In “Behemoth!” ,” a centerpiece of the New York Film Festival, writer-director Tony Gilroy has created a delicately calibrated film about a cellist (Pedro Pascal) experiencing a midlife crisis. The film performed well in a packed Alice Tully Theater, and the after-party revelers were mildly upbeat.
Critics approve (see Metascore) of Pascal’s calm, near-silent, responsive performance — he carries the film, appearing in every scene — but the best actor category is so crowded that it will be difficult for Pascal, who has never been nominated, to squeak through louder comedians like Matt Damon (“The Odyssey”), John Malkovich (“Wild Horse Nine”), Andrew Scott (“Elsinore”), Ryan Gosling (“Project Hail Mary”) and John Turturro. (“The only pickpocket living in New York”). So far, Pascal has been recognized for his television work in HBO’s “The Last of Us.” “Monster!” marks his most ambitious leading film role to date.
The film’s strength lies in its innovative musical structure, as Pascal’s cellist plays different film scores in a series of Hollywood sessions that take his memories back in time. Gilroy deployed nine composers, including James Newton Howard, Michael Giacchino and Alan Silvestri, who he calls The Behemoth! Collective. Academy rules require that no more than three composers be entered to be considered for a film’s original score. But Searchlight hopes that the musical committee will consider accepting that of the collective in this case.
The music industry has been flexible with the multiple songwriters of “K-Pop Demon Hunters,” who shared their only Oscar. But the drum score for “Birdman” was disqualified for not being music. The two composers of “Arrival”, Max Richter and Jóhann Jóhannsson, were disqualified. But later, Richter was allowed to include both new and old material on “Hamnet.”
Searchlight will have no problem submitting Lukas Frank’s song “Your God Is Sleeping”.
And Gilroy, showrunner of Andor and nominee for original screenplay and direction Michael Clayton, respected by the industry for his writing prowess, could be in the running for original screenplay. He defines the term.
Searchlight Pictures opens “Behemoth!” » from December 4.
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