The Christophers
I’ve always been what some call a “music person.” I took piano lessons for many years, I played trumpet in high school, and have sung in my church choir since 2003. I know music. It comes easy for me. Conversely, I know almost nothing about art. Yes, I know “The Scream” and “Whistler’s Mother,” but art really isn’t my jam. Perhaps because of this orientation, I’m more inclined to make a personal connection with a film about music – such as “Amadeus” or “Immortal Beloved” – than I am a film about art – such as “Pollack” or “Mr. Turner.”
A film about an artist
As you can imagine, I wasn’t overly thrilled about seeing Steven Soderberg’s new picture “The Christophers,” even though I typically enjoy Soderbergh’s work. “The Christophers” is about a fictional artist named Juliam Sklar (veteran British actor Ian McKellen), who began a series of paintings of his then-lover, whose name was Christopher. The first two groups of paintings were considered classics in the art community, and fans have been eagerly awaiting the unveiling of the third set – even though Sklar admits he has no plans to ever complete them.
The evil plot
Seeking a path for monetary compensation for his being a bad father – an implied designation, if not overtly declared – his moral-compassless children (played by James Corden and Jessica Gunning) seek out a young artist to complete the paintings now in exchange for a portion of the profit they intend to make when they reveal the paintings upon Julian’s death. Is Julian dying? Not in so many words, but he’s very aged, and doesn’t appear to be in great health.
The artist they hire is Lori Butler, played by television actress Michaela Coel. While quite strong in a firm yet understated manner, Lori exists in Ed Solomon’s original screenplay more as a window to Julian than a fully fleshed character. I would have liked to have known more about her backstory. We know she is a young, struggling artist, and we know her early work was berated some years earlier by Julian on a fictional television show called “Art Fight.” From the clips, it appears to be something along the lines of “America’s Got Talent,” with Julian playing the part of the “mean judge,” a la Simon Cowell. We are led to believe that because of this association, Julian’s son and daughter employ Lori for their forgery plan, as she also has an axe to grind with him.
Ian McKellen
We first meet Julian when Lori visits his London duplex at the scheduled time. She barely utters a word, as Julian proceeds to blather on about life, art, and anything else that pops into his mind. He is, at once, brilliant and exhausting. The character is reminiscent of Ethan Hawke’s Lorenz Hart character in last year’s “Blue Moon.” And much as in that picture, Julian is the story here. And much as with Hawke, McKellen nails the role so radiantly that it must be considered the pinnacle achievement of his career, even though he 86 years old. But recall, Bruce Dern was 76 for “Nebraska,” and Anthony Hopkins was 82 for “The Father.”
“The Christophers” is an original screenplay, but it would certainly work well as a stage play, in the vein of “The Whale” – practically a one-man show, with most of the action taking place in his living quarters. It’s too bad this film didn’t come out later in the year. My fear is McKellen’s work will be forgotten by the time awards season rolls around again.
Not an “art film”
As far as my initial hesitation regarding an “art film,” “The Christophers” is about an artist, but it doesn’t have to be. In other words, it could be about a once-great novelist, playwright, or musician. The profession doesn’t matter as much as the character. And again, McKellen is so strong here, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else in the role – including Hopkins. His great lines come so fast, it’s impossible to recall all of them. I particularly enjoyed hearing group all of Andy Warhol’s work in with “Dogs Playing Poker.”
Soderbergh’s style
Now, what about Soderbergh? Last year I wrote that Soderbergh doesn’t really have a specific style. He’s given us everything from “sex, lies, and videotape” to “Traffic” and “Oceans Eleven.” But if I could label him in some way, I would classify Soderbergh as an “observer.” We don’t “feel” Soderbergh’s characters the way we do Spielberg’s; instead, we view them from a comfortable distance. After all, we watched and observed all the characters in “sex, lies, and videotape” through the lens of James Spader’s videotaped sessions with them. In last year’s “Black Bag,” it felt as though Soderbergh wrote and fleshed out the characters first, and then wrote a plot around those characters. Same here. The plot is secondary to the characters – or character, as the case may be.
“The Christophers” is not as strong a film as “Black Bag.” I had that one #2 on my list of the ten best films of 2025. I fully expect to see ten superior films this year than “The Christophers.” I doubt, however, that I will witness any performance superior to that of Ian McKellan’s.
Andy Ray‘s reviews also appear on https://townepost.com/tag/film-review/