USAToday
Claudia Puig
Noise pollution may not be the biggest problem plaguing our world today, but it does qualify as a bona fide annoyance.
The eccentric and generally entertaining Noise is about one man's frustration with the aural assault of car alarms, leaf blowers, jackhammers, motorcycle engines and various other disturbers of the peace in big cities. And it takes place in arguably the noisiest of all cities: New York.
Tim Robbins plays David, a successful lawyer with a well-appointed apartment, a lovely cellist wife (Bridget Moynahan) and an adorable young daughter (Gabrielle Brennan). He would appear to have it all.
But he's plagued by the ever-present wails and clatter of car alarms and other blaring mechanisms. He reads Hegel for pleasure and wrestles with his own dialectic. He can just close the window and ignore the distractingly loud sounds of city life, as his wife suggests, or he can do something about it.
His impotent rage, as dismissed by the cartoonish mayor of the city, played by William Hurt, turns into action.
He adopts the persona of "The Rectifier" and goes from disconnecting burglar alarms to breaking car windows with hammers, baseball bats and any other handy implement capable of destruction. He spends time in jail. His wife kicks him out.
When not vandalizing, he has an affair with a much younger Russian woman (Margarita Levieva), which leads to a ballot initiative. That's a new twist: an illicit romance that spurs political action.
At its best, Noise is reminiscent of the bitingly witty Thank You for Smoking. At its worst, it grows repetitive, then goes off track, as written and directed by Henry Bean (The Believer).
The premise is intriguing and Robbins gives a consistently good performance.
The satire is not only confined to the ways in which cacophonous sounds can interrupt our most cherished activities such as reading to a child, getting a good night's sleep, listening to music or making love.
Once David decides to use the political system to effect change, he has to navigate the labyrinthine bureaucratic structure. Scenes in which he tries to break through the red tape of city government are among the most amusing.
The film effectively illustrates its point through its soundtrack of crescendoing and shrill car alarms and other nerve-jangling sounds.
As a dark comedy of ideas, it starts out powerfully and has some mordantly funny moments. Then the plot grows repetitious before petering out.
Still, amid the seasonal din of so many raucous summer blockbusters, Noise offers blessed relief in the form of a strong central performance, sharp dialogue and edgy humor.
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