AEGiS-Miami Herald: THE NIGHT LISTENER (R) - two and a half stars: Intriguing drama goes to prove less is more

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

THE NIGHT LISTENER (R) - two and a half stars: Intriguing drama goes to prove less is more

Miami Herald - August 4, 2006
Rene Rodriguez, rrodriguez@MiamiHerald.com

Funnyman Robin Williams is back to "serious" mode in The Night Listener, and it's the first time since 2002's One-Hour Photo where his presence in a dramatic film isn't more of a distraction than anything else. Williams is surprisingly convincing and sympathetic as Gabriel Noone, the host of a late-night radio program who, by his own admission, has routinely looted his life for stories to tell on the air -- with a few embellishments here and there for dramatic effect.

But after getting dumped by his longtime partner (Bobby Cannavale), Gabriel becomes too depressed to go on the air and entertain his listeners. After reading a manuscript of a soon-to-be published book written by an HIV-positive boy named Pete (Rory Culkin) detailing a childhood of horrific sexual abuse, Gabriel develops a friendship over the telephone with the 14-year-old, who happens to be a regular listener of his show.

Gabriel also befriends Pete's adoptive mother Donna (Toni Collette), who is fiercely protective of the frail kid and is not above yanking him away from the telephone without warning. Gradually, over time, Gabriel starts to suspect there is something not quite right about Pete, and when he can't ignore his curiosity any longer, he flies to Wisconsin to meet the kid face to face.

The Night Listener, which is based on a novel by Armistead Maupin, will probably be described as a Hitchcockian thriller, but that label promises a different kind of movie than the one director Patrick Stettner (The Business of Strangers) delivers here. The film is not so much suspenseful as intriguing, and although the source of its ominous tension can't even be hinted at without spoiling its mysteries, it's enough to say the story turns out to be more about identity and psychological dependency than about dark, festering secrets.

Refreshingly modest in both length (82 minutes) and ambition, The Night Listener implies that Gabriel subconsciously forms a bond with Pete as a way of getting over the abandonment of his partner, who was also HIV-positive. That explanation seems a bit pat, but it dovetails with the prevailing theme of the film: People will resort to desperate acts to overcome loneliness, or at least feel like they are part of the world.

Cast: Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Rory Culkin, Bobby Cannavale, Joe Morton, Sandra Oh.

Director: Patrick Stettner.

Screenwriters: Armistead Maupin, Terry Anderson, Patrick Stettner.

Producers: Jill Footlick, John Hart, Robert Kessel.

A Miramax Films release. Running time: 82 minutes. Vulgar language, adult themes. Playing at area theaters.

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