The Humbling movie review & film summary (2015)

But that charisma is exactly what prompts Pegeen to come knocking on Simon’s door once he returns to his sprawling and lonely Connecticut estate. She’s had a crush on him since she was 8; now, nearly 30 years later, she’s finally old enough to act on it. Gerwig’s naturalism provides an intriguing contrast at first with Pacino’s studied intensity, but eventually it becomes clear that her character is more of an idea that an actual, fleshed-out figure, even as she remains thoroughly dominant. While that’s probably intentional, her vagueness and flightiness make it difficult to connect with her.

Among the other crazy women surrounding Simon are Sybil (Broadway veteran Nina Arianda), a socialite he met at the psychiatric hospital who’s now stalking him in hopes of hiring him to kill her husband. The versatile actress is given just one note of driven mania to play, which inspires some laughs at the beginning but ultimately grows tiresome.

Kyra Sedgwick, meanwhile, has even less to do as Pegeen’s spurned former girlfriend. She also stalks Simon, angrily warning him that this beguiling creature will ruin his life the way she ruined hers, but she does so mostly by phone. The character feels like an antiquated stereotype of the predatory and possessive lesbian. Dianne Wiest and Dan Hedaya come and go in just a couple of brief scenes as Pegeen’s disapproving parents.

But “The Humbling” reserves its worst treatment for another ex of Pegeen’s: a young black man named Prince (Billy Porter) who used to be a young black woman named Priscilla before undergoing gender reassignment surgery. Through Simon’s behavior, the film regards Prince as a freak and mocks him for having feelings of loneliness and confusion.

While Levinson draws some lovely work from Pacino, his tone veers uncomfortably between intimate honesty and broad comedy; then again, this is tricky, ever-changing material which would be difficult for anyone to navigate well. But Levinson does make the most  of a small budget, a handful of locations (including his own house), and a brief shooting schedule. Similarly, he ventured into low-budget territory in 2012 with the eco-horror film “The Bay,” a real departure for the Oscar-winning director of “Rain Man.” It’s easy to see why Roth’s novel resonated with both Pacino and Levinson with its themes of remorse and redemption at an older age, as well as issues of identity that can only come with a life lived publicly. 

But if you’re going to see a film that covers these topics – and does so exquisitely – seek out “Birdman” first.