Intermission: Daily events cause lives to spin out of control

"Changing Lanes"

Directed By: Roger Michell

Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Affleck

Rated: R

Every one of us considers ourselves to be the center of the universe.

When I hear references to the tragedies of 2001, I think about 3/29 and 9/04, days that were really bad for me personally. Eventually, it dawns on me that the news reports I'm hearing are probably referring to the things that took place on 9/11.

While I'll admit these events were tragic and awful, they didn't really affect me in a direct way.

I don't mean to sound selfish, but I have to say it's true: What happens to me is how I view the state of the entire universe. Such is life.

Roger Michell's new film, "Changing Lanes," deals with this reality and presents a tale that involves the lives of two "normal" people caught up in events that change their lives in a most profound way.

At first look, one wonders how this sort of thing could get so out of hand, but on closer examination, it all makes some sort of perverse sense.

When someone crosses you, you feel you must take revenge and stand up for your rights. The two main characters in this movie do so, and both are convinced they are absolutely right. In reality, they both are right, and this fact makes the story a complex and profound study of human nature.

There are no easy answers here, and director Roger Michell tells the tale in a straightforward fashion that gives equal time to both sides of the story. Both of the main characters have equal amounts of justice on their respective side.

"Changing Lanes" opens with a simple, minor automobile accident. Gavin Banek (played by Ben Affleck) runs into Doyle Gipson (played by Samuel L. Jackson.) Both are on their way to court for very different reasons.

Gavin is a lawyer who is involved in a convoluted case involving some underhanded business by the firm. Doyle is a recovering alcoholic trying desperately to retain contact with his two sons, who are in the custody of his estranged wife. The accident makes both Gavin and Doyle late for court appearances and sets off a series of events that profoundly change their futures. "Better luck next time" is the resounding theme throughout and makes an eerie statement about the way people deal with others.

Gavin leaves an important folder at the accident, and Doyle's late appearance renders him entirely helpless. Jackson is great, as always, in this role of a man whose life is utterly in control of the powers that be.

Affleck does a great job as well as the somewhat smug yuppie who eventually realizes that life is more than a game and other people's dealings are just as important as his.

Screenwriters Michael Tolkin and Chap Taylor flesh these characters out to the extreme and engage the audience totally in their lives. "Changing Lanes" is a complex character sketch that works very well, drawing the viewer into the lives of the two main performers.

I was worn out by the sheer emotional turmoil evoked by the story at hand.

Affleck and Jackson do a great job with a well-written script.

"Changing Lanes" brings a great many things to light and forces the viewer to focus on subjects that are everyday occurrences, but may deserve more attention than we tend to bestow upon them. Our one-on-one dealings with other human beings are actions we tend to take for granted.

"Changing Lanes" is a thought-provoking piece of work and one that deserves a bit of attention.

(Jim Wunderle works at Associated Video Producers and is a Springfield free-lance writer and musician.)