Impressive ‘On a String’ is slightly out of tune
Stand-up comedian Isabel Hagen is obviously talented. Besides writing and directing her semiautobiographical “On a String,” the Juilliard-trained violist also proves she knows how to fiddle around with toxic relationships, and not just with men. Oh, and she also helped compose and sing her film’s theme song, “Feel Alive.” What can’t she do?
Well, for starters, dodging inevitable comparisons to Greta Gerwig. Hagen not only resembles the “Barbie” mastermind, but she also writes, acts and directs in the same ironic style. But I assure you, she’s no Greta Gerwig. Not yet anyway. What “On a String” reveals is promise. It’s not LOL funny, but it is often humorous, and keenly observational about her generation’s disillusionment with careers, family and sex.
Like many Gen Zers, Isabel approaches life more as a spectator than a participant. As a member of a freelance string quartet, she and her mates, including bestie violinist Christina (Ling Ling Huang, also classically trained), play weddings, funerals and galas thrown by pompous patrons of the arts. They are, in essence, providing the soundtrack to other people’s lives, often appearing so anonymous that, at parties, their standard all-black attire leads them to be mistaken for caterers.
Her love life is even worse. The beaus she chooses to rosin up with are either too sensitive, too full of themselves, or too married. Over the course of this compact 78-minute movie, we get a brief taste of all three types. And that’s exactly what they are: types. There’s no depth to them, nor just about anyone else Isabel comes in contact with at home or away.
All we learn about her family, with whom she still resides, is that her father (Dylan Baker), mother (Joy Suprano) and snobbish classical pianist brother, Owen (Hagen’s real-life sibling, Oliver), are eccentric. But they are normal in comparison with the weird dudes she seems to attract, most notably, Dave (John Kroner), a member of the New York City Philharmonic who suggests Isabel audition for the orchestra’s open violist seat.
Dave is full-on self-involved emo, a step up, I guess, from her last flame, a certified cry-baby with zero self-esteem. But who’s this tall, lanky Carl (Frederick Weller), so taken by Isabel that he spontaneously invites her to teach his tween daughter to play violin? Turns out he, like the plucky Isabel, is a struggling musician struggling with monogamy, even when his wife, Trisha (Jamie Lee), is close by.
That’s a lot of plot strands to juggle, even for an accomplished filmmaker, let alone one making her writing-directing debut. And it only becomes more obvious as the discombobulated story progresses. What, and who, are we expected to focus on? The audition? The potential affair with Carl? Isabel’s personal and professional squabbles with Christina? Her impossible home life?
Hagen simply spreads herself too thin, which greatly reduces the movie’s emotional impact. You grow to feel quite affectionate toward Isabel. But everything around her appears so superficial and inconsequential that you start losing interest in the various outcomes.
What holds you, at least for a while, is the sparkling cast, not to mention the fabulous music, most of it recorded live on set. As a director, Hagen knows what she wants and knows how to extract it from every actor. No easy task. Her writing, while not terribly original or concise, is often witty and engaging. And while her failure to satisfactorily flesh out the characters ultimately leaves you underwhelmed, you can’t help being intrigued by what she might have planned for an encore.
Movie review
On a String
Rated: R for sexual content, nudity, some language
Cast: Isabel Hagen, Frederick Weller, Eric Bogosian, Dylan Baker, Jamie Lee, Ling Ling Huang, Oliver Hagen, John Kroner and Joy Suprano
Director: Isabel Hagen
Writer: Isabel Hagen
Runtime: 78 minutes
Where: In theaters Sept. 11 (limited)
Grade: C+
