ROGER DODGER - In my review of 'Igby Goes Down' a few weeks ago (10/3), I commented on the fact that I wasn't really buying the contention from almost every critic that writer/director Burr Steers' screenplay was all that "smart." Sure, there are a lot of pop culture references and clever insults, but rarely did the script provide any genuinely provocative moments where you learn something new about the world, or at least the way you look at it. For that, you have to go to the true "smart" movie of the year, 'Roger Dodger' (opened 10/25 in NY/LA), which I had the opportunity to see at the Chicago International Film Festival. Going in, I didn't have any expectations. I only selected the movie because I like Campbell Scott (who plays the title character) going back to 'Singles' and 'Big Night', and the synopsis on the festival's Web site proclaimed it to be "deft and humorous," while describing Roger as "a cynical copywriter who 'makes people feel bad' for money." (Note to marketing people: I'll fall for anything advertised as "deft" and "cynical.") First-timer Dylan Kidd opens the movie with a slightly 'Reservoir Dog'-esque conversation scene in which Scott's character lays out his theory about how as the human race continues to evolve, men will basically be rendered useless -- a theory that is proven correct later that night when his boss (Isabella Rossellini), with whom he has a purely sexual relationship with, decides his services won't be needed anymore. Right away it's clear that Roger is a bit of an enigma. He's basically that annoying guy we all met in college -- a didactic, abrasive know-it-all who dominates conversations displaying his infinite wisdom -- but he's so charismatic and sarcastic that you don't mind listening to him. Throughout this opening scene and for much of the film, Kidd utilizes a hand-held camera and a lot of extreme close-ups. People will walk right in front of the camera, objects in the room occasionally obstruct your view, and the whole time you never really get to see the characters in their surroundings. My initial reaction was to dismiss this technique as a slightly pretentious attempt at being artistic, but eventually I began to understand Kidd's decision. These characters (chiefly Roger) are so cerebral that their world-view doesn't really extend much further than the person across the table from them. Do you really need to see the restaurant they're sitting in? Can it really be different than any other posh Manhattan establishment you've seen before (whether in person or in the movies)? What's really bold is that Kidd makes a movie set in Manhattan that basically chooses to ignore the fact that it is set there -- unlike 'Igby' and another recent NYC movie, 'Tadpole'. After being dumped by his boss, Roger is surprised at his office the next day by his 16-year-old nephew, Nick, from Ohio. Nick is a virgin and wants desperately for his uncle to take him out on the town and teach him all the secrets of getting laid, something Roger is more than happy to do. I saw the movie with CS contributor Sam Hallgren and we were both surprised by how much we liked the movie and Scott's performance in particular. Sam writes: "Campbell Scott and Javier Bardem (in 'The Dancer Upstairs') have delivered two of the best performances I have seen all year (by far), and, really, two of the best performances I can remember seeing in some time. Both, it goes without saying, will be ignored come Oscar time. And both performances do what every "best actor" performance should do -- give the film that they're in (already good, in the best circumstances) an additional layer of meaning or reality that even the screenwriter couldn't have imagined. Campbell Scott brought a level of emotional intelligence to his role that I think very few others would have." I agree completely. Scott nails this role so perfectly that it makes you wish he was a little more visible as an actor these days. Just when you think Roger is nothing more than a cocky, misogynistic slimeball, he displays another level to his character, which is also a credit to Kidd's screenplay. I loved the irony of seeing a guy who portrays himself as always being control whine to his boss, "But, I'm your boy...I'm your boy!", in a way that reveals just how immature he truly is. On Rotten Tomatoes, 27 out 31 critics gave 'Roger' a positive review. The most accurate blurb probably comes from the L.A. Times' Kenneth Turan who writes, "Kidd has made the rare film that's more interesting and complex than it sounds, a feature that shares with its characters a willingness to take risks and ends up, like them, in places they never expected to be." CS bottom line: Intelligent and very funny with Scott delivering the most inspired performance of his career.

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