On May 24, Oscar and Golden Globe-nominated John C. Reilly turns 55 years young. Happy Birthday, Mr. Reilly! To help celebrate Mr. Cellophane’s day, let’s look back at three memorable performances from his fantastic, fruitful film career. Rather than highlight his more prominent roles in “Step Brothers” (2008), “Wreck-It Ralph” (2012) and “Chicago” (2002), here are three deeper cuts, and I hope that you enjoy this John C. Reilly triple feature.
John, “Hard Eight” (1996) – A hard eight is a roll of two dice, when both land on four at a craps table at any nearby casino. According to Google, the player has a 9.09 percent chance of winning this bet, or 1 out of 11. Since the payout is typically 9 to 1, the numbers are not in the bettor’s favor, so the possibility of hard luck is real.
When we first meet John (Reilly), he looks like a man with a genuine case of hard luck. He’s sitting on the ground and leaning against Jack’s Coffee Shop when an older, distinguished gentlemen (Philip Baker Hall) - sporting a black jacket, a black tie and a white-collar shirt - approaches. Sydney (Hall) offers John a cigarette and a cup of coffee. He accepts, and this is the beginning of a close friendship and a master-apprentice relationship, but what type of trade does Sydney offer?
John C. Reilly and Philip Baker Hall in “Hard Eight” (1996)
Set in Reno, Nev., “Hard Eight” is director Paul Thomas Anderson’s first movie, which includes a sizable gambling element, but the narrative also copes with a separate makeshift existence away from the flashy lights, buzzes, beeps, cheers of victory, and groans of defeat inside the casinos.
Anderson tapped Reilly and Hall for his first three movies, including “Boogie Nights” (1997) and “Magnolia” (1999). When looking back 24 years to “Hard Eight”, it’s easy to notice Reilly’s youthful appearance. Okay, he was 31 in 1996, so he’s not that young. Still, Reilly’s character carries a clumsy innocence of a guy with no apparent skills.
That’s not exactly true, because John declares, “I know three types of karate: Jiu-Jitsu, Aikido and regular karate.”
Then again, one can picture John waking up on a random Wednesday morning and wondering what his unscheduled day will bring.
He’s a man without a plan.
John (the character, not the actor) might remind you of Dirk Diggler’s wingman Reed Rothchild (Reilly) from “Boogie Nights” (1997), but after his adult film career ended, and the Game of Life dropped an ACME anvil on his head.
Anyways, Anderson includes Gwyneth Paltrow in a dubious role as a cocktail waitress. Samuel L. Jackson plays a security manager, and Philip Seymour Hoffman delivers a wild, flat out hilarious appearance as an obnoxious craps roller.
Yes, this is Anderson’s first rodeo, but he dons his familiar puppet master garb, throws his on-screen creations on an ice rink and yanks the strings. Be careful, Clementine (Paltrow), Jimmy (Jackson), Sydney, and John! So much is at stake, including the coveted master-apprentice relationship.
Dean Ziegler, “Cedar Rapids” (2011) – “What’s the one thing I said? Stay clear of Dean Ziegler.” – Bill Krogstad (Stephen Root)
Anne Heche, John C. Reilly, Ed Helms, and Isiah Whitlock Jr. in “Cedar Rapids” (2011)
If Dale Doback in “Step Brothers” (2008) is Reilly’s funniest role, then his turn as party-focused insurance agent Dean Ziegler has to be a close second. Descending on The Royal Cedar Suites in Cedar Rapids, Iowa for the 2009 ASMI Conference, Dean isn’t focused on work. Drinking heavily, breaking the rules, hanging out with old friends, and making new ones are his top priorities. Sure, tornadoes sometimes plague Iowa, but there’s no bigger windstorm than Dean, or as he likes to call himself, The Deanzie. This 40-something – who would’ve fit in perfectly with Faber College’s Delta Tau Chi fraternity – hasn’t grown up. Mind you, Mr. Ziegler doesn’t carry a malicious bone in his body, but that doesn’t stop him from conversing like Cartman from “South Park” while wearing a $600 suit and holding a cocktail.
“Well, I don’t know about you wingnuts, but the Deanzie could use a Drinksie,” he proclaims.
Reilly steals every scene with wild, nutso glee, as Dean constantly crashes cartoonish crass words of wisdom to his old buddies (Isiah Whitlock Jr. and Anne Heche), but they usually shrug off his insane energy. They’ve heard it all before, but we haven’t, and their deadpan reactions amplify our disbelief, as this crazy, lovable lug delivers about 200 belly laughs. Stepping into a swimming pool fully clothed with a garbage can lid on his head and loitering around the hotel in his boxers for about 10 minutes of screen time are a couple of hysterical examples.
Dean also finds nicknames for his buddies, as Ronald “Ronimal” Wilkes (Whitlock Jr.), Joan “O-Fox” Ostrowski-Fox (Heche) and newcomer Tim “Timbo” Lippe (Ed Helms) stick together like lifelong siblings, but families do fight on occasion. Tim – who might be the most naive adult to grace a big or small screen since Woody Boyd (Woody Harrelson) – clashes with Dean, as the exchanges between straight-laced Timbo and frat brother Deanzie are celebrated comedic concoctions. By the way, Helms is the lead protagonist of director Miguel Arteta’s “Cedar Rapids”. “The Office” actor carries a full bag of humor-tricks, and Reilly’s Dean is the perfect horrible influence that we’ll wholeheartedly invite to every bash.
Eli Sisters, “The Sisters Brothers” (2018) – Director Jacques Audiard’s “The Sisters Brothers” might have the most confusing title in motion pictures since “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” (2016) and “Naked Lunch” (1991). Don’t blame Audiard, because Patrick deWitt’s novel has the same name. Thankfully, the opening minutes of this unorthodox, unexpected western (set in 1851) solve the perplexing mystery. Eli Sisters (Reilly) and Charlie Sisters (Joaquin Phoenix) are brothers.
Eureka!
John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix in “The Sisters Brothers” (2018)
They are also business partners, and their chosen profession is bounty hunting. Reilly quietly dives into the mind of the low-key, older sibling, who regularly looks after his younger, hot-tempered and constantly-drinking bro Charlie. Let’s face it; Charlie is Phoenix’s jam. Joaquin can play him in his sleep, and look at his performances in “The Master” (2012), “You Were Never Really Here” (2017) and “Joker” (2019) as similar examples.
Both actors deliver intriguing, mesmerizing work in this picture, but Reilly juggles a lot as Eli. First, Eli is a part-time nurse because Charlie frequently drinks himself into oblivion. His repeated losing battles with alcohol frustrate Eli to no end, but that’s not the only bother.
On their journey from Oregon City to several locales in Northern California - to track down an unassuming chemist named Hermann Kermit Warm (Riz Ahmed) - Charlie asks, “Are you upset because I’m the lead man?”
Charlie takes the reins of this dangerous two-man errand, but we might assume he’s led every operation during their entire careers. Now, Eli and Charlie’s relationship isn’t a replica of Fredo and Michael Corleone’s rapport, but some conflicted feelings – to a much lesser degree - linger.
Lastly, both Eli and Charlie – at their core - are stone-cold killers. Although Eli is dramatically more introspective and subdued than Charlie, these two gunfighters wouldn’t blink at shooting a man. The Sisters fire so quickly and efficiently, the fella facing the end of either sibling’s barrel better not bat an eye, or he will find himself buried six feet in the ground.
Audiard hardly gives us a chance to stand on solid ground throughout the film’s 122-minute runtime. With Charlie’s unpredictable conduct and the picture’s shifting narrative, this western regularly surprises, including some haunting scenes with minimal lighting. “The Sisters Brothers” is a dark picture, literally and figuratively, but Reilly and Phoenix light up the screen in a movie (with a notable title) that you won’t soon forget.
Jeff – a member of the Phoenix Critics Circle – has penned film reviews since 2008, graduated from ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and is a certified Rotten Tomatoes critic. Follow Jeff and the Phoenix Film Festival on Twitter @MitchFilmCritic and @PhoenixFilmFest, respectively.
