It sounds cheesy to say that anything is "star studded," but in the case of Synecdoche, New York, it is barely exaggeration. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, and many other familiar faces crowd the screen in shot after shot. Philip Seymour Hoffman turns in a (somewhat typical at this point, but still) very strong performance as Caden Cotard, a man that is losing touch with his world and the things in it that he loves. He's convinced that he's dying, and by at least one interpretation of the film's later development, may actually be dead for most of Synecdoche, New York. He begins to slip into a fugue state (that may actually be real life) and we follow him deeper and deeper into his psychosis, or "sycosis" as he jokes with his young daughter early into the film. The other characters swirl around Cotard in a jumble that isn't actually a jumble at all. Kaufman's incredible talent is to arrange a filmic dream, to actually put you into a waking dream as you watch his characters' lives unfold.
The beauty of a film like Synecdoche, New York is that it isn't possible to give away anything or provide any spoilers. Most interpretations of the film could be correct, and whether Cotard is dreaming, dead, a god, delusional, or a genius is pretty much up to the viewer. A theme that runs through much of Kaufman's work also shows up here, the idea of where personal identity begins and ends. The weirdness around body snatching that suffused Being John Malkovich is both toned down and amped up in Synecdoche, New York. Instead of snatching bodies, these characters find people to play them in a giant, scale-model of New York City where the drama being played out contains nothing more than vignettes from real life, reproduced in a meta-city by meta-people. Actors playing actors, acting out real-life scenes from may just be Cotard's imagination. Riffing on reality shows, perhaps? Drawing from heady concepts like Baudrillard's theories on simulacra? You'll gain much more insight watching the DVD's special features, which will make you want to rewind the tape and watch the entire film over again.
An interpretation of Synecdoche, New York as one big "in joke" between Kaufman and his actors isn't completely out of place. In this sense, you could say that it's a mean, selfish film that holds onto its meaning to either make people in the audience feel stupid or just make them come back for a second showing. We'd prefer to just say thanks for the incredible abundance of Kaufman's vision, and tell the haters to stick to simple movie that deliver their messages in short sentences, like in a fortune cookie... Synecdoche, New York isn't about being intellectually elite as much as it's just a brain-dump by a guy with an incredible brain. Never boring, never condescending, and riveting in many, many scenes...Synecdoche, New York is an opposing force to all the empty, bloated Hollywood snoozers that crowd the cineplex on a typical weekend. See it and decide for yourself.
