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  • ‘Merv’ Interview: Zooey Deschanel, Charlie Cox and More

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    Premiering on Prime Video beginning December 10th is the new romantic comedy ‘Merv’, which was directed by Jessica Swale (‘Summerland’), and stars Zooey Deschanel (‘Elf’), Charlie Cox (‘Daredevil: Born Again’), and Gus as Merv.

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    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Zooey Deschanel, Charlie Cox and Director Jessica Swale about their work on ‘Merv’, Deschanel’s first reaction to the screenplay, why Cox wanted to work with her, their experience acting opposite Gus, and the challenges of directing a dog on set.

    (L to R) Zooey Deschanel, director Jessica Swale and Charlie Cox star in 'Merv'.
    (L to R) Zooey Deschanel, director Jessica Swale and Charlie Cox star in ‘Merv’.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.

    Related Article: Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio Talk Disney+’s ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

    (L to R) Zooey Deschanel and Gus in 'Merv'. Photo Credit: Wilson Webb/Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.
    (L to R) Zooey Deschanel and Gus in ‘Merv’. Photo Credit: Wilson Webb/Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.

    Moviefone: To begin with, Zooey, can you talk about your fist reaction to the screenplay and what it was like for you to work with Gus and Charlie on this project?

    Zooey Deschanel: Well, I first read the screenplay and I really love the concept. I thought it was so sweet. Then I got to talk to this amazing person here, Jess, and we got along so well, and I wanted to do the movie. Then working with Gus and Charlie was just an absolute dream. What incredible actors. Very different. Different styles. Gus works for sausages and Charlie works for hamburgers. Similar, but different, although I bet Gus would work for a hamburger too.

    (L to R) Charlie Cox and Gus in 'Merv'. Photo Credit: Wilson Webb/Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.
    (L to R) Charlie Cox and Gus in ‘Merv’. Photo Credit: Wilson Webb/Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.

    MF: Charlie, can you talk about Russ and Anna’s relationship, how they come together to help Merv, and what it was like for you working with Gus and Zooey?

    Charlie Cox: I think one of the things I found charming about the script was this idea that Merv seems to intuit it early on. He knows what they don’t about each other and about their relationship. It’s really a journey of their discovery that they are perfect for each other. That life is difficult, life throws curveballs at you and that doesn’t necessarily mean that the person that is your significant other is the wrong person for you. Gus is a dream, as Zoe said. He’s a very professional. There’s a kind of a fun anecdote, which is that Gus is so well trained that he can do anything on command that he’s trained to do. But because he’s so well trained, one thing he’s not particularly good at is being very enthusiastic because that’s a trait of an untrained dog. So, when we needed Gus to be like crazy, or happy to see us or happy that we’re together or whatever it was, they would bring in Gus’s stunt double, Captain Chaos, who is untrained. Captain Chaos after a slight beard dying, would do a very good impersonation of Gus being very excited. Zoe in my estimation is the GOAT of rom-coms and this genre. So, to work with her is like an absolute treat and dream.

    Gus in 'Merv'. Photo Credit: Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.
    Gus in ‘Merv’. Photo Credit: Prime Video. © Amazon Content Services LLC.

    MF: Finally, Jessica, can you talk about the challenges of directing a dog and how you were able to get such a great performance from Gus?

    Jessica Swale: Yes, all my normal techniques of persuasion, like taking an actor for dinner and chatting about the character or do some rehearsals and get to know each other. It’s a bit more difficult when he’s a four-legged dog and he doesn’t speak English. It might be my accent because I was one of the only Brits on set, but it was it was great fun. It’s funny because he’s a key part of the movie, but it is essentially a rom com that’s about two people at a very particular moment in their lives and he’s the conduit. So, whilst he’s on screen a lot, it’s really about the story and the kind of machinations of the relationship and the emotional growth of these two. The great thing about having Gus on set was that he is always a pro and he’s always ready and over the course of the weeks that we were shooting, the more you got to know him, we were able to go, “Oh, that’s how we recognize that he’s sad. He’s good at it and he drops his eye line. He puts his head down or he tilts to one side”. So, I think we had a more dramatic performance as the weeks went on.

    'Merv' premieres on Prime Video December 10th.
    ‘Merv’ premieres on Prime Video December 10th.

    What is the plot of ‘Merv’?

    An estranged couple (Zooey Deschanel and Charlie Cox) who learns that the dog they share is suffering from depression following their break-up, awkwardly reconciling over the holidays when they take their dog on a sunny vacation to Florida to lift his spirits.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Merv’?

    Gus on the set of 'Merv'. Photo Credit: Dana Hawley/PrimeVideo. © Amazon Content Services LLC.
    Gus on the set of ‘Merv’. Photo Credit: Dana Hawley/PrimeVideo. © Amazon Content Services LLC.

    List of Dog Movies:

    Buy Zooey Deschanel Movies On Amazon

  • Movie Review: ‘Drive-Away Dolls’

    Margaret Qualley as "Jamie" and Geraldine Viswanathan as "Marian" in director Ethan Coen's 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Margaret Qualley as “Jamie” and Geraldine Viswanathan as “Marian” in director Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    In theaters now is ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ starring Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein, Colman Domingo, Bill Camp, Pedro Pascal, Joey Slotnick, C.J. Wilson, and Matt Damon.

    Related Article: Geraldine Viswanathan, Margaret Qualley and Beanie Feldstein Talk ‘Drive-Away Dolls’

    Initial Thoughts

    With the Coen brothers taking some time off from each other after more than three decades of making films together, Joel Coen directed the eerie, intense ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’ with Denzel Washington, while Ethan Coen has gone in a decidedly different – if also somewhat more familiar — direction.

    Writing with his wife (and occasional Coens editor) Tricia Cooke, Ethan has come up with ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a combination of road movie, comedic caper, and lesbian romance that comes across in the style of earlier Coen brothers laughers like ‘Raising Arizona’ or ‘The Big Lebowski.’ But while the two leads have a sweet and even sexy chemistry, the laughs are only intermittent and the movie ends up as a trifle more than anything else.

    Story and Direction

    Actor Margaret Qualley, actor Geraldine Viswanathan and director/writer/producer Ethan Coen on the set of 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Actor Margaret Qualley, actor Geraldine Viswanathan and director/writer/producer Ethan Coen on the set of ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    Jamie (Margaret Qualley) and Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan) are two young women who are part of Philadelphia’s lesbian community circa December 1999. Jamie is spur-of-the-moment, unfiltered, and endlessly horny, wrecking her latest relationship with cop Sukie (Beanie Feldstein) when she is caught cheating on her. Marian, on the other hand, is uptight and generally unhappy with her life, which Jamie sees as a cue that her friend needs to get out in the world and get some action.

    The two decide to reboot their lives with a road trip to Tallahassee, Florida, where Marian wants to do some reading and bird-watching while Jamie wants to stop at every lesbian bar they can find along the way and get them both laid. The pair hit the road in a one-way rental courtesy of drive-away agency operator Curlie (Bill Camp) – except that Curlie has given them the wrong car.

    Unbeknownst to the ladies, the trunk contains cargo both strange and decidedly illegal, and the two women find themselves soon pursued by two goons (C.J. Wilson and Joey Slotnick) sent in hot pursuit by their boss (Colman Domingo), who answers to an even higher, more sensitive authority. How Jamie and Marian deal with the situation could either shatter their friendship, end their lives, or both.

    Actor Geraldine Viswanathan, actor Margaret Qualley, and director/writer/producer Ethan Coen on the set of 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Actor Geraldine Viswanathan, actor Margaret Qualley, and director/writer/producer Ethan Coen on the set of ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    As one might ascertain, ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ (the original title, ‘Drive-Away Dykes,’ was deemed not marketable by the studio) sounds a lot like it’s in the vein of the deadpan, surreal comedies that Joel and Ethan Coen were perhaps best-known for during their 34 years of making films together. While the siblings have made more somber films together as well, like the brilliant ‘No Country for Old Men,’ as well as drama/comedy hybrids like ‘Fargo’ and ‘A Serious Man,’ it’s their zanier work like ‘Raising Arizona,’ ‘The Big Lebowski,’ and ‘O Brother Where Are Thou?’ that audiences arguably associate most with them.

    ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ is squarely in the latter tradition, with a slightly different spin. In addition to directing (this is Ethan’s first narrative feature on his own, following a 2022 Jerry Lee Lewis documentary), Ethan also wrote the script with his wife Tricia Cooke, who identifies as queer. Perhaps the freshest aspect of ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ is that its leads, Jamie and Marian, are not solely characterized by their sexuality; yes, the movie features a heaping of sex, and Jamie is determined to get some nookie for both herself and Marian, but it’s not the driving factor of the story or part of its overall themes. It’s just part of who they are.

    The relationship between Jamie and Marian is at first caustic, of course – these two couldn’t be more opposite – but it soon unveils a sweeter undertone as they (somewhat predictably) begin to realize that their feelings for each other run deeper than suspected. Qualley and Viswanathan are great together in that regard, and the strongest element of the movie. But the plot – a mishmash of ‘60s and ‘70s road trip B-movies with a dash of psychedelia – is so slight, the ultimate mystery so silly, and the humor so intermittent that ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ ends up feeling like a lark more than anything else. It has its fun moments, but it dissolves from one’s mind the minute it’s over.

    Characters With No Names

    Colman Domingo as "The Chief", C.J. Wilson and Joey Slotnick as "The Goons" in director Ethan Coen's 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Colman Domingo as “The Chief”, C.J. Wilson and Joey Slotnick as “The Goons” in director Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features

    Part of the problem with ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ is that it feels almost like a rough draft version of a Coen brothers film (since Cooke, a film editor by trade, frequently edited the movies made by her husband and brother-in-law, she was an integral part of that process as well). The Coens’ comedies are often fizzy in nature, but the best of them have had either incredibly compelling characters or either a darker or more emotional underpinning that helped turn them into classics.

    There’s little of that in ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ outside of the chemistry between Qualley (who looks a lot like her mom, Andie MacDowell, in this film) and Viswanathan, both of whom have great timing, highly expressive faces and effortless presence. Qualley is particularly strong here. But once you get beyond them, the rest of the characters are barely sketched in.

    Pedro Pascal stars as "The Collector" in director Ethan Coen's 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    Pedro Pascal stars as “The Collector” in director Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    Most of them don’t even have names, in fact. Domingo, always excellent, is just called the Chief; his goons are literally listed as The Goons in the credits. A cameoing Pedro Pascal is known simply as the Collector (there are a couple of other cameos as well, from Matt Damon and a star we won’t name). We’re always a little suspicious when we see cast lists like this: it’s often a clear sign that these characters are nothing more than stock figures, and little attempt is made to give them any more depth than that (the Goons’ scenes together – one of them constantly yammering and the other mostly silent – also feel like reheated leftovers from two similar characters in ‘Fargo,’ played in that film by Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare).

    But that’s the nature of ‘Drive-Away Dolls’: it’s so sketchily pulled together that despite the warmth of its leads and a few fleeting jokes than land well, it feels like half the movie is missing in a way. And in one sense, it is.

    Final Thoughts

    Geraldine Viswanathan as "Marian", Margaret Qualley as "Jamie" and Beanie Feldstein as "Sukie" in director Ethan Coen's 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Geraldine Viswanathan as “Marian”, Margaret Qualley as “Jamie” and Beanie Feldstein as “Sukie” in director Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    The Coen brothers have made some of the most memorable movies of the last 40 years, from their still-stunning debut ‘Blood Simple’ to some of the later masterpieces we mentioned earlier. But from the two narrative movies we’ve seen them make separately – Joel’s ‘Macbeth’ and Ethan’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ — it seems like they have very different sensibilities. Based on watching the latter, it almost seems that Ethan needs his brother’s sense of gravitas to balance out his goofier impulses.

    We certainly admire the lead performances and the film’s successful attempt to make a queer-centric movie that doesn’t feel like exploitation (not the good kind) or heavy-handed social commentary. But we wish those were in service of something that was funnier in a more organic way and less of a one-dimensional pastiche.

    ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ receives 5.5 out of 10 stars.

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    What is the Plot of ‘Drive-Away Dolls’?

    This comedy caper follows Jamie (Margaret Qualley), an uninhibited free spirit bemoaning yet another breakup with a girlfriend, and her demure friend Marian (Geraldine Viswanathan) who desperately needs to loosen up. In search of a fresh start, the two embark on an impromptu road trip to Tallahassee, but things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals along the way.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Drive-Away Dolls’?

    • Margaret Qualley as Jamie
    • Geraldine Viswanathan as Marian
    • Beanie Feldstein as Sukie
    • Colman Domingo as Chief
    • Pedro Pascal as Santos
    • Bill Camp as Curlie
    • Matt Damon as Senator Channel
    • Joey Slotnick as Arliss
    Margaret Qualley as "Jamie" and Geraldine Viswanathan as "Marian" in director Ethan Coen's 'Drive-Away Dolls,' a Focus Features release.
    (L to R) Margaret Qualley as “Jamie” and Geraldine Viswanathan as “Marian” in director Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls,’ a Focus Features release. Credit: Wilson Webb / Working Title / Focus Features.

    Other Ethan Coen Movies:

    Buy Tickets: ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Coen brothers Movies on Amazon

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