‘The Revisionist’ review: Excellent Alison Brie and Dustin Hoffman lead a strong cast through a weak story

Movies about writers face a rare challenge: after all, how cool would it be to show someone tormented by a blank page or an unresponsive computer? Oscar winner Cabot It had the dramatic advantage of having the protagonist investigate a horrific mass murder. But that was an exception.

Defying these difficulties, Alex Flack Revisionista world premiere for Tribeca, introduces us to not one but four main characters who are either published or aspiring writers. Suffice it to say that the spectacle, while not quite comparable to watching paint dry, is not always radiant.

It certainly helps that four talented actors are involved in this endeavor. We first meet old friends John, played by André Holland, and Jacob, played by Tom Sturridge, when they meet accidentally after a long separation. Jacob is married to Elise, played by Alison Brie, and is struggling with her latest novel. Jacob’s father David, played by Dustin Hoffman, is a storied author who hasn’t written anything in decades.

Jacob and John both think they might be able to distill David’s life story for a best-selling book. Meanwhile, Elise tries to fend off her agent who keeps pressuring her about the long-awaited deadline.

As we learn more about the four characters, the drama escalates. However, the drama is primarily verbal, and although there are revelations about family history, the 90-minute running time feels padded. We can be grateful that the actors are attractive and skilled. Holland, who had important roles in Selma and moonlightAlways captivates. But even though Bree is a talented actress, she can’t overcome the bad behavior that the script forces her to portray as perhaps the least sympathetic of the four characters. The British Sturridge plays with the American accent until the final scenes when he reverts to a British accent for no apparent reason.

Fortunately, Hoffman, who is between this and Tuner He was enjoying something of a late-career renaissance, sweeping in to save the day. He interacts gracefully with the other three actors, and manages to paint a complex and memorable character. At first, David is cruel and unloving toward his son, and very attractive toward John, who is eager to take on the autobiographical project Jacob has been pursuing. But as we learn more about the complicated history of Jacob and his parents, our sympathies rally around David, even though the actor never pleads with him.

So who would publish a book at the end of the story of writers with inflated egos? The answer may or may not surprise you, but whether you’ll care is another matter. The picture is well crafted and skillfully acted, but it never rises from literary conceit to truly compelling drama. It’s only when Hoffman takes center stage that you feel like you’re watching a real movie, rather than a heavy-handed creative exercise.