In ‘Puzzle,’ hidden talent transforms woman’s life
There are many things to admire about “Puzzle,” Marc Turtletaub’s film about, among other things, competitive jigsaw-puzzle solving.
But none is better than giving Kelly Macdonald the spotlight. She is terrific as a woman not exactly trapped in a dead-end marriage, but not exactly thrilled about life at the moment, either. The discovery of an unexpected skill offers her a passage to freedom, kind of, and the way she takes advantage of this is intriguing.
Agnes (Macdonald) is married and has children. She’s busy when we meet her, cooking and cleaning and preparing
‘Puzzle’ ★★★★ Director: Marc Turtletaub. Cast: Kelly Macdonald, Irrfan Khan, David Denman.
Rating: R for language. Note: At Harkins Camelview at Fashion Square.
for a birthday party.
Hers, it turns out.
Among her presents is a fairly complex puzzle — 1,000 pieces, no less. She puts the puzzle together easily, and
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then breaks it apart and puts it together again. It’s obviously satisfying to her, but it’s fair to say her husband, Louie (David Denman, who played a similar type of character on “The Office”), is not impressed.
Agnes is not exactly a world traveler, having spent her life in Bridgeport, Connecticut, but she takes a train into Manhattan, where she finds a flier for a puzzle competition.She meets Robert (Irfan Khan), a rich inventor and puzzle enthusiast looking for a partner for the competition.
You may be able to guess where this leads. Then again, you may not. One of the nice things about the film, a remake of the 2009 film “Rompecabezas,” is how it sometimes diverges from the expected path in what otherwise seems like a tried-and-true formula.
The film, written by Oren Moverman and Polly Mann, is also admirable in how it avoids easy shortcuts. For instance, Louie could have been portrayed as a chauvinistic troglodyte. But he’s not, despite, among other things, his rather particular expectations involving cheese (you’ll see). He loves Agnes, but has lived in the same sheltered world all his life.
I’m also a sucker for movies in which people discover a hidden talent. Typically this involves some sort of preternatural ability with a weapon or martial arts or something, making them excellent assassins or whatever. Agnes is simply really good at puzzles, but this has as big an effect on her life as a suddenly discovered expertise at sharpshooting might in another kind of film.
The acting is uniformly good, but Macdonald is excellent. She captures the frustrations Agnes didn’t even know she had, and her performance is authentic throughout. Turtletaub is a longtime producer whose credits include “Little Miss Sunshine,” “Sunshine Cleaning” and “Safety Not Guarnteed.” “Puzzle” is only his second feature, but he’s patient with his actors and the story; also, he and cinematographer Chris Noor find gorgeous shots.
“Puzzle” just kind of chugs along at its own pace, one of those small movies that packs a bigger punch, one in which, sorry, all the pieces fit.