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THE NIGHT LISTENER
Directed by: Patrick Stettner.
Written by: Armistead Maupin, Terry Anderson & Patrick Stettner, based on the novel by Maupin.
Produced by: Jill Footlick, John Hart, Robert Kessel & Jeff Sharp.
Director of Photography: Lisa Rinzler.
Edited by: Andy Keir.
Music by: Peter Nashel.
Released by: Miramax.
Country of Origin: USA. 82 min. Rated: R.
With: Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Sandra Oh, Joe Morton, Bobby Cannavale & Rory Culkin.

To get to the heart of why this dramatic film would cause a roomful of film critics to laugh from beginning to end, we have to first analyze the press notes. They begin with a disclaimer: “[Screenwriter Armistead] Maupin himself has called The Night Listener a ‘mystery of the heart.’ Since the satisfaction of mystery comes in the telling, the filmmakers respectfully ask that you try to avoid revealing too much about the true nature of certain characters in your coverage of the film.”

However, the film’s enigmatic central figure is obviously and unmistakably Anthony Godby Johnson, the supposedly sexually-abused teenager with AIDS who was outed in Newsweek magazine as being a hoax invented by a “social worker,” the only person known to have actually seen the author. In the early ‘90s, “Tony” contacted several prominent authors by phone, and eventually began a long friendship, sight unseen, with Maupin, who wrote a blurb for Johnson’s 1993 novel A Rock and a Hard Place.

While the film and the press notes go out of their way not to mention Johnson’s name, it’s painfully clear that prominent radio talk show host Gabriel Noone (Robin Williams) is being tricked by Donna D. Logand (Toni Collette), as several of Gabriel’s friends point out during the film’s first few minutes. After listening to one of Donna’s daily voicemail updates about the illness of her foster child, Pete D. Logand (Rory Culkin), and the progress of his manuscript, the first thing that Gabriel’s ex-boyfriend Jess (Bobby Cannavale) points out is that she and Pete sound remarkably alike. The film’s early revelation of its own mystery would throttle any enjoyment to be found in this pedantic thriller. If the Johnson saga or the recently uncovered J.T Leroy literary scandal (where a woman wrote under the persona of a sexually-abused former teenage hustler/drug addict) didn’t already tip off the audience, director Patrick Stettner’s melodramatic insistence on a surprise at every twist and turn will have the audience groaning.

At least the acting is good. Robin Williams will surprise you as a subtly charismatic lead. He breathes life into an otherwise tiring character, what with the dialogue’s blank portrayal of Gabriel. The same can be said for Collette, who always brings complexity where heavy-handed simplicity reigns supreme. Perhaps this can be attributed to Stettner’s supervision. But it’s unlikely, judging from poor choices like the closing title credits that try to prolong the mystery, claiming the real-life Pete D. Logand’s existence has never been confirmed or denied.

Sandra Oh is delightful as Gabriel’s assistant Anna, but that can hardly considered as a plus since she has less than five minutes of screen time. There’s also some moody music by Peter Nashel. But beyond that, you might as well read the detailed Vanity Fair online article on J.T. Leroy than see this psychobabble. Zachary Jones
August 4, 2006