HomeARTSRomantic Dramedy Admission is Ivy-League Material

Romantic Dramedy Admission is Ivy-League Material

By CHRIS SURPRENANT
Arts Editor

Sure, the college admission process is rough on high school students, but has anyone considered the toll it takes on the adults who control their fates? Tina Fey and Paul Rudd star in their newest film Admission, directed by Paul Weitz, a story about two people who are still learning life’s little nuances, despite being out in the real world for some time.

While that may sound like the tagline from a John Hughes movie, I can assure you it’s not St. Elmo’s Fire. Fey stars as Portia Nathan, a complacent admissions officer at Princeton University whose life is upended when she reconnects with John Pressman (Rudd) a former classmate. John runs an alternative high school where one of his students, Jeremiah Balakian (Nat Wolff), is seeking to attend Princeton. The relationships between the three ebb and flow through a series of misunderstandings and happenstance, and bring to light the complexities of every relationship.

Initially, Portia cons herself into believing that she’s living the perfect life with a job that includes an awful interpersonal relationship with her coworker and a boyfriend of ten years who pats her on the head as a sign of affection like she’s a golden retriever (and also leaves her for a Virginia Woolf scholar). Yes, Portia has forced herself to be comfortable in life, but it’s that very comfort that’s making her life hell.

To counteract her day-to-day routine, the film includes Lily Tomlin as her eccentric feminist mother, Susannah. Tomlin steals every scene she’s in with her very tough, take-no-prisoners take on the character. She says to Portia at one point, “If I had to do what I was supposed to do every minute of my life…I’d probably kill myself.” To which Portia glumly replies, “Did you just say if you were me, you’d kill yourself?” Talk about a dysfunctional relationship.

The film deals with many different types of relationships. The mother/daughter relationship between Susannah and Portia is played skillfully by both Tomlin and Fey. While Tomlin’s character is brassy and independent, she’s deeper and more emotional than Portia could have ever imagined. Their relationship grows over the course of the film, in which they connect more than ever before.
Connection is another issue of Portia’s. In the workplace, she is vying for a promotion against her seemingly perfect nemesis, Corinne (an excellently evil Gloria Reuben). She’s built a bubble around herself that makes her world seem perfect. When John comes into her life as a do-gooder for all mankind (including third-world countries), Portia is initially repelled. She refuses his advances, saying to him, “I’m not some village in need of a water tower!”

John, though seeming to want his student Jeremiah to attend Princeton, has an alternative motive. He believes that Jeremiah is Portia’s son, and hopes to reconnect her with him. When this plan goes to pot, all three are hurt. Rudd is never unlikable in the film, though he tampers with issues he really should never touch in the first place. An incredibly versatile actor, he is able to play even the most intense scenes with his usual charm. As John, he truly cares for Portia and only wants to do what he believes is right.

As the story continues, however, Portia begins falling for John. Fey and Rudd have great chemistry, something which should not be a surprise to anyone given the innumerable talents of both comedians. Fey plays the independent, hapless heroine well, probably something she pulled in from her years on 30 Rock. Portia is no Liz Lemon though. Instead, Fey’s performance shows a woman who is really unsure of where her life is heading, and has her plans changed by one significant discovery. The film shows how incredibly exasperated Portia has become with her situation when she must listen to Princeton hopefuls who say things like, “My father is Cuban and in a wheelchair.” Of course, the absurdity of the admissions process is highlighted as well, as we all know how tedious and frustrating that can be.

Though the film deals with a more dramatic subject, comedy runs rampant throughout. There’s a scene at the alternative Quest High School with a cow that gives viewers another perspective on raising cattle (and not exactly in a good way, either). The script is strong, with sharp one-liners, as well as some sophisticated jokes for the college faculty crowd. Anyone who appreciates a good literature reference will enjoy the running gag of the very pregnant “vile Virginia Woolf scholar.”

While Fey and Rudd have an undoubtedly serious edge in the film, the comedy comes from their examination of the everyday lives of these people. Viewers will be able to relate to their plights and appreciate the absurdity that follows them because the story and characters are so grounded in reality. Admission includes some comedy pros and a great story with some surprising twists. At its conclusion, the film’s ongoing mantra will ring true to any viewer: “Just be yourself.”

Admission hits theaters March 22nd

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