Jay Kelly is the rare character study that gets less interesting as it goes along, mainly because the title character is a bit of a blank—in conception and performance. That is, of course, part of the meta point, considering George Clooney—an actor often accused of simply playing himself—plays Jay Kelly. Jay is even asked at one point, “What do you say to people who say you only play yourself?” His answer is a variation on the Sylvia Plath quote that opens the film: “It’s a hell of a responsibility to be yourself. It’s much easier to be somebody else or nobody at all.” Unfortunately, we get nobody at all. Jay Kelly—as directed by Noah Baumbach and co-written by Baumbach and Emily Mortimer—never suggests that there is more of Kelly to explore beyond his obvious movie-star charm. (For the record, Clooney is capable of more; see Michael Clayton.) Once we understand this, the complications the movie brings in—Kelly’s estrangement from his adult daughters because he prioritized work when they were young; a possible “scandal” after he gets in a fistfight with a friend from drama school—feel slight, especially considering Jay has to deal with them while en route to a tribute event in Italy on his private plane. It’s like watching the problems of a pillow. Adam Sandler, as Jay’s manager, delivers the most interestingly human performance in the film, but he’s not given nearly enough to do. If the movie had been equally weighted between them, Jay Kelly might have been somebody.
(12/9/2025)
