Richard Gere is one of those actors who tends to play second fiddle to someone else, but in really good or high-profile movies. Audiences probably know him best from Chicago, Pretty Woman, or American Gigolo. He’s usually great in everything he does, but has been shut out of the Oscar nominations. That is likely to change this year with Arbitrage. In it, Gere takes an unlikable Madoff-type executive, Robert Miller, and makes the audience root for him to weasel out of his crazy predicament. Part of this is due to the writing/direction of Nicholas Jarecki, but most of the credit goes to Gere and his inescapable charisma and ingenuity.
Robert Miller (Gere) appears to have it all: he’s been on the cover of Forbes, a regular on CNBC, perfect family, and a startup financial corporation. Closer to the vest, we learn Miller is forging his company’s records to appear more profitable, he is sleeping with an artist (Laetitia Casta), and his loan shark is asking for payment in a short period of time. All this stress from work, home, and other commitments leads to Miller falling asleep at the wheel, wrecking his car and killing his mistress. This requires Miller to summon up all his skill set to keep his name in the clear from the bulldog detective (Tim Roth). This includes family [his wife Ellen (Susan Sarandon), daughter Brooke (Brit Marling)], friends [Jimmy (Nate Parker)], and business associates [partner Gavin (Chris Eigmann) and buyer James Mayfield (Graydon Carter)].
Suspense in 2012 is usually generated through chases and explosions to hold the audience’s attention. Arbitrage takes an old school approach: it uses the plot and character motivations to generate tension. Miller’s primary motivation is personal survival, but after that his motivations become murky. We never know if he is going to sell someone down the river or bribe them to keep quiet or quid pro quo them. The ambiguity of the ending drives the story forward and never telegraphs its ending until it uses a standard thriller plot twist to a key piece of evidence.
Unfortunately for Arbitrage, Miller is the most interesting character. He dominates the screen time thankfully, but other characters are left to react to his assertions. Fortunately, Jarecki writes these characters as at least pretty smart or inventive. Only the magnetism of someone like Miller can cause them to act or not act depending on what he wants. Because Miller’s wants are also only surface deep, he has no identity other than what he portrays to other people. The more time he spends with people, the more quickly they see through his charade, but by that time they are so wrapped up in their own lifestyle that threatening him would threaten their own lives, and thus Miller’s leverage remains in tact. Arbitrage makes you openly question if Miller has any face at all, because there are acts of selflessness in the film that keep it in question.
All of the mystery is fueled through Gere’s performance. As Miller, he uses his pitiable characters of the past to promote likability and approachability to Miller, who is one of the more detestable characters in 2012. Watching Gere manipulate emotions through various techniques (shouting, abrasive behavior, comfort, reasoning, bribes) requires a wide range of acting ability, and Gere’s preparation should land him his first Oscar Nomination for this role.
Arbitrage means the simultaneous buying and selling of securities, a very apt title for this film. While the act of arbitrage is very complex and nuanced, the acting in Arbitrage is a showcase of Richard Gere’s complexity and nuance. I don’t understand how arbitrage is conducted, but I do understand that if Richard Gere explained it to me, I’d probably believe him.