True Story (2015)

** out of ****

Have you ever sat down to a meal that you fully expected to be delicious, only to find it bland, unremarkable in every way, and kind of regretting having it? That's pretty much how I felt about “True Story”.

When it comes to comedy, I find both Jonah Hill and James Franco roughly as entertaining as a solid nut punch, but I have enjoyed them both a great deal in their more serious roles. Since this film was both of them in serious roles and the subject matter seemed compelling, all the stars were aligned for it to be an enjoyable film. But much like a bad marksman, the story just can't find the target.....

Hill is Mike Finkel, a once promising investigative journalist now disgraced for taking liberties with the truth in a story published in New Yorker Magazine. Franco is Christian Longo, a man on the run from accusations of murdering his wife and children. When Longo is picked up in Mexico he identifies himself as Mike Finkel, having admired Finkel's writing for several years. Due to this attempt to use the writer's identity (coupled with Finkel's inability to get work doing anything else), they meet to discuss a true-crime book about the impending trial.

Franco and Hill both deliver their roles admirably – Hill as a self-loathing, tormented man and Franco as a cold, ruthless mystery who can never be trusted to tell the truth. As the film goes on and we learn more about them, questions appear as to the depth of Longo's depravity, and the extent of his guilt in the murders, but it's all pretty odd. He admits to killing his wife and one child, but somehow the movie tries to portray that he may be found innocent if he can prove his dead wife killed the other two kids. It all boiled down to a guy that should ride lightning (as they have the death penalty in Oregon, where the film takes place), and as a viewer I didn't care if he was found guilty of one or all of the murders.

Basically it looked like an interesting story but it turned out not to be. You never feel any real sympathy for Franco's character and though you like Hill's a bit more, it's only a marginal bit. The film ends up telling you all about guys you don't care about and their exploits, which come off as almost meaningless.

The performances are well done, but the film isn't good. It also isn't awful. In fact, it isn't much of anything.