Rating: B-
It’s been 22 years since Bill Murray’s cultural renaissance, which began with his scene-stealing role as wealthy businessman Herman Blume in Wes Anderson’s 1998 breakthrough, Rushmore. The part was specifically for him, with lines intended to be delivered with his smirking, deadpan delivery. While that was certainly the case, the fact that he also dipped into his own pocket to help keep the film afloat helped in sparking a new wave of reverence for the comedy icon.
Five years later, as Murray was becoming a ubiquitous presence on internet memes, stunt-cast cameos, and Gen-X throw pillows, he first teamed up with writer/director Sofia Coppola for Lost in Translation. Playing washed up actor Bob Harris, it was another part written for him specifically, though unlike Rushmore, it was clear that the film was banking on his unique brand of “give no fucks” charm to carry the story.
Now, the latest team-up between Murray and Coppola, On the Rocks, comes across as an effort capture lightning in a bottle — at least at first. The scant marketing certainly attempts to paint this as another delightfully lighthearted dramedy, with Murray gleefully galavanting from scene to scene, occasionally in character. Instead, it ends up testing the limits of his urban legend-level charm, and begging questions about how that could cause more problems than it would solve.
Murray stars as Felix, a – wait for it – spontaneous, free-spirited womanizer who decides to involve himself in the marital troubles of his daughter, Laura (Rashida Jones). After a couple of awkward, innocuous moments with her husband, Dean (Marlon Wayans), Laura begins to suspect that he’s cheating on her. What’s worse, she believes he’s doing so with one of his co-workers, which makes her increasingly uneasy due to his non-stop business travels.
While Laura seems hesitant to look for any support from the rest of her Hamptons-dwelling family, she instead turns to her over-protective, absentee father. Felix reacts with a propensity to not only help, but also to utilize his vast amounts of wealth to effectively stalk Dean to do so. Over the course of his involvement, his endless resources provide a detailed look at his airline flights, hotels, and credit card spending, as well as his day-to-day comings and goings. As Laura becomes increasingly weary of these revelations, Felix response is to shower her in attention — despite the substantial inconvenience his spontaneity routinely causes her.
It’s these deceptively selfless acts where Felix’s facade (and, to an extent, Murray’s) begins to unravel. Sure, impromptu five-star lunches and joyrides in vintage roadsters sound like fun, but less so when you have two young children, a looming work deadline, and the ongoing anxiety about your marriage. Of course, the possibility that his daughter’s life could very well be unraveling never seems to be of any actual concern for Felix. To him, it’s simply biological fatalism, and he even delivers a truly bizarre monologue that came across like it’s aimed Kevin Smith fans who unironically refer to movies “cinema.”
Conversely, it’s in these exact moments where Jones manages to shine as Laura. While the film does successfully convey her sense of isolation contrasted against the bustling streets of New York City, her work problems boil down to the fact that she sold a book without having written it yet. Which, come on, is not the most relatable problem to have. Still, Jones’ portrayal grounds Laura with humanity and, by contrast, a refreshing sense of normalcy.
This is not to say that On the Rocks attempts to actually villainize Felix and all his quirky little Murray-isms in any real way. It does, however, reframe them from a slightly different perspective. And, after more than two decades of directors like Jim Jarmusch, Anderson, and Coppola herself having all indulged their work by simply involving Murray’s presence, On the Rocks leaves one to ponder how exhausting it might really be.
On the Rocks premieres Friday, October 23 on Apple TV+Â
