You have to admire the candour with which Albert Brooks made his films over the years – his debut feature film Real Life was all about reality, while his masterpiece Defending Your Life was exactly what it promised based on the premise. Modern Romance is one of the few times we’ve been misled by the director, since this couldn’t be further from a romantic work if it tried, which is exactly the purpose of this deliriously funny little comedy about everything that makes a relationship toxic – jealousy, deception and a lot of mistrust. When Elvis Presley sang the iconic ballad “Suspicious Minds”, it almost feels as if he was anticipating this film and its portrayal of a romance being put through some enormous challenges, which hinges entirely on Brooks’ abilities on both sides of the camera to abandon his inhibitions and take on a character that is far more unlikable than most of his peers would be willing to have lead their films, or portray themselves, and turned him into one of the most fascinating individuals in 1980s comedy, all through having a clear direction of where the character needed to go, as well as the progression of the story (and the disconnect between the two is where the film gets most of its genius). Often forgotten when discussing the director’s output, mainly because Modern Romance is the director at his most cynical, it’s difficult to imagine a world where this didn’t help us get the more self-assured and interesting filmmaker that Brooks was about to flourish into. Raw, blisteringly funny and never without a well-earned laugh waiting just around the corner, Modern Romance is about as triumphant a social critique as it is a madcap comedy-of-errors, which only proves the exceptional gifts that lurk beneath the unkempt mind of one of comedy’s finest artists.

As much as I absolutely adore Brooks as both an actor and a director, his directorial debut, Real Life, was well-meaning and very ambitious, but far from a perfect film, and had far too many flaws to actually be embraced as the masterpiece it could’ve been. Fortunately, these problems were the result of growing pains rather than anything indicative of Brooks’ prowess as a filmmaker, since his second feature is far more impressive, and a considerable leap forward into the realm of directing for someone who had a natural gift for it, both in coming up with innovative and interesting stories that seem so simple, but in retrospect were actually quite revolutionary in how they weren’t told in such a manner, and his methods of bringing them to the screen in a way that had never been done before. Modern Romance isn’t a high-concept story in the traditional sense – it simply follows an ordinary film editor who impulsively breaks up with his girlfriend, and shows his efforts to win her back after changing his mind, all the while trying to resolve some small but irritating problems with the latest film that he is editing, which slowly starts to become as much of an active relationship as that with his now ex-girlfriend. The key here isn’t in finding the originality in the premise, but the unique qualities of Brooks’ storytelling, which is a deft combination of razor-sharp writing (not only is he a great actor, terrific comedian and very interesting director, he’s an exceptionally gifted writer as well, which makes so much sense considering his origins in the industry) and peculiar directorial decisions that we may not expect from such a straightforward narrative. There are choices made, whether it be in the editing (giving the film the usual meta-fictional qualities that we can expect from a Brooks production), the simple but effective cinematography, or just the way the director knows how to use the camera to tell a story, that elevates Modern Romance and makes it something special.

As far as performances go, Modern Romance is yet another terrific example of Brooks’ gifts as an actor – and considering his later films either placed emphasis on his high-profile co-stars (such as Debbie Reynolds in Mother and Sharon Stone in The Muse), or on his efforts to elevate his craft as a director, which is most prominent in the gloriously existential utopian odyssey that is Defending Your Life, we sometimes need to be reminded how great of an actor he is himself. Modern Romance may be the best performance he gave in one of his own films, if only for the sake of the film centring on his character’s journey, which is peppered with an array of encounters with other eccentric individuals who are memorable, but mainly just set-dressing for what is a story of two people in love. Playing yet another everyman who works in the film industry, Brooks turns out a predictably endearing performance, his mop of curly hair and expression of resigned hopelessness hidden behind a scowl of regret (but not missing that spark of optimism that gleams in his eyes at many points) making his character of Robert all the more unforgettable. Many viewers can find something relatable in this character, even when we feel like we’d prefer not to have our own lives mirrored in his struggles, since he is not much more than an impulsive, selfish oaf – but Brooks makes him so charming (without excusing his behaviour), turning this performance into one that is far more than just the actor playing another ordinary individual, and more aligned with a tricky balancing act, where he has to expose the toxic traits of this character while not causing the audience to become uninvested in him as a person. It’s a daring and captivating performance that doesn’t get enough credit, even by those who recognize Brooks’ brilliance as a film director. He’s one of the few film directors that forms nearly every one of his films as a starring vehicle for himself, without ever coming across as greedy.

To circle back to an earlier point in this review, Brooks has a tendency to make films centred on one particular subject – this doesn’t imply that they’re solely restricted to exploring only issues relating to that matter, but it serves as the primary focus of much of the story, and hence plays a role in making these some of the most forthright and frank discussions on some very common topics. Modern Romance is a film about falling back in love, but in a way that isn’t adherent to the idea of the happy-go-lucky rekindling of an old flame. If anything, the reunion between the two characters at the heart of this film is less of a case of reigniting an old spark as it is filling in the unbearably lonely void left by a hasty breakup. These characters don’t necessarily have feelings for one another, they just fear being alone, which leads to a series of situations where they reunite, only to break apart again after their real motives or actions (normally those relating to Robert and his tendency towards always destroying any chance of having a solid relationship with any woman) are made obvious. The thesis statement that drives Modern Romance isn’t very clear, other than it being Brooks’ attempt to tell a very funny story about an extremely vengeful film editor who will do anything to be with the woman he loves, as long as he is happy and satisfied (her desires, emotions or mental well-being are not even a cause for concern for the hedonistic anti-hero), but it comes to life with such vivid, eccentric humour, we can’t avoid being thoroughly captivated. This is the magic of the film – we can be transported into the heart of this loveless relationship, and still feel those unmistakable flutters of romance, because even through these questionable actions, there is always hope that there is going to be a happy ending for these characters – the question is whether or not they deserve it.

Romance is a theme about as old as literature itself, so it only makes sense that Brooks, who has formed a career out of these keen observational parables, would find time to make a film that centres on the subject in a way that is funny but also very insightful, the balance between the two being the key to the success of the entire project. It’s not a particularly deep film in how it explores romance at all – if anything, the film’s decision to constantly flirt with the idea of a happy ending, before veering off in the opposite direction, is a risky but worthwhile one, since we never quite know what to expect, which contributes to the bewildering nature of the story as a whole. It’s not always very clear what Brooks was attempting to do here, but the most logical answer is probably the one that has to do with telling a story of love through his particularly idiosyncratic perspective, where someone can be given multiple opportunities to win the love of his life over, only to squander it at every opportunity, almost all of it having to do with his own selfishness. Yet, there’s a tenderness beneath the cynicism that means a lot more than we’d expect, based on a surface-level glimpse of the story, which feels a lot more rich once we move beyond the quirky establishing moments and find that there’s legitimate depth to this story, which comes through quietly but with great consistency. Brooks is a gifted filmmaker who deserves a lot more credit, not only for making us laugh, but also his methods of provoking thought, as evident by Modern Romance,  a film that could’ve just been a slight, endearing comedy, but flourishes into a pointed, compelling critique without too much effort.