Just like that! We have Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang Goethe, where he portrays an individual named for the name of his book who fell as a result of his unrequited love. Despite its popularity, Goethe denied authorship of this piece in no time. This was probably because this fuel proved to be highly inflammable concerning subsequent Romanticism, which he despised; there were reports of readers feeling so bereaved like the protagonist in real life committing suicide under similar circumstances.
Very few people now remember how much impact it had on society when it came out 250 years ago.
Yet, you don’t have to be knowledgeable about that historical tidbit in order to enjoy the new “Young Werther” although it surely helps. “Based on the smash hit 1774 novel of tragic romance,” as opening onscreen text announces, Jose Avelino Gilles Corbett Lourenco’s debut feature is a confident, clever update. The same young man is again afflicted by an impossible love. However this time he eventually gains the knowledge that eluded his predecessor; he came to realize that when one does not get what they want, life does not come to a stop and insisting on it shows highest level of being self-centered. This sprightly Canadian comedy has been released by Lionsgate to U.S. theaters, digital and VOD platforms.
It was under a linden tree that this wounded person like his favorite character in literature which is why he came up with the phrase “I am dying… because of love.” This way, our Werther of the 21st century (Douglas Booth) was recalling what brought him here. He came from a rich family residing at Westmount, an affluent neighborhood in Montreal, to Toronto with Paul who is a hypochondriac and his best friend for a short job seeking to get back some ancestral gem. Therefore, he also told his uncle played by The Kids in the Hall’s Scott Thompson that he had plans to leave soon after and go “…off to Europe for expat adventures, materials for my memoir.” Yes, young Werther is an aspiring author and enough egotistical to think that he can be his own main topic.
But this careless self-centeredness gets diverted if not doused when he stumbles upon Charlotte (Alison Pill) who lives locally. Werther’s lack of respect for anything else but himself must have come into play when seeing her talking to her younger sister Sissy (Iris Apatow) and their friend Melanie (Amrit Kaur), which worked so well that she invited him over for her occasion that night albeit out of desperation since her crush on him was already obvious.
Charlotte herself, a somewhat grumpy customer who has spent most of her life bringing up six juniors after their parents’ death, doesn’t really want one in the first place not to mention some arrogant newcomer. But smug enough about it, Werther is handsome, funny and persuasive to an extent that even she for once has fun at the party he almost singlehandedly turned into a raucous affair.
By the time night is over though… Charlotte says she’s engaged. But Werther isn’t going to let it get him down; nor will he be dismayed by the fact that her lawyer fiancé Albert (Patrick J. Adams) appears to be well-established and attractive with great personality and good reputation for his legal skills among other things as compared to him. For this reason W. makes himself over as their common new BFF under a guise of harmless friend while making his real goal aware that her workaholic lover does not give as much pleasure like Novio does.
The bait and the drawback however are that Werther is an immature man-child taken with his own bag of tricks. Conversely Albert is grown up perhaps not so much fun on Friday night but more sensible than Charlotte could care to think.?
Lourenco’s script leads away from Goethe as it progresses, developing a crisis where the semi-repentant Werther tries to do Albert a “solid” that is disastrously mistaken. This triggers more occurrences leading to the linden tree and the realization of the protagonist about his mistakes. Who has had their hot-air balloon popped lately by an onslaught of negative critical notices such as: “narcissistic Lothario,” a stalker, “pretentious and juvenile,” just to name a few all done with his pouty face.
Skipping on ranch for an R-rated comedy, “Young Werther” opts for wit and style instead which much like its own self-consciousness are not always as impressive as they think. In some ways resembling Diablo Cody’s early work, this screenplay’s snappy dialogue can become too sharp or show-offy. There are also one or two too many cute little montages that simply shortcut narrative while selling us on either W.’s joie de vivre (which frankly seems a bit tiring) or that these two leads belong together (when actually they look more like a playful poodle than a dutiful plow horse.)
However, it is also tightly engineered and executed; the brisk pace, as well as astute packaging, often achieves the desired effect despite a general lack of gut-wrenching humor. The design contributions are colorful without being distracting in their flashiness-from Nick Haight’s widescreen cinematography to Ciana Vernon’s production design and Owen Pallett’s sometimes ironic original score. All these elements contribute to establishing a world where flippant contemporary attitudes can mix harmoniously with remnants of an outmoded 18th-century thinking pattern.
Booth, an English actor, is however the major factor that makes “Young Werther” a tricky and fun play at all. He evokes the early Val Kilmer from “Top Secret!” and “Real Genius” in depicting a nimble hero. This guy is so clever in his peacocking we can forgive him for being his own biggest fan.
For More Movies Like Young Werther (2024) Visit Solarmovie
