‘Ode to Joy’ Finds Humor and Heart in a Rare Medical Condition

Dating is rarely a cakewalk, and it becomes a whole different playing field once you hit a certain age. Throw in a rare, narcolepsy-like disorder, and one may becomes resigned to dying alone. This is the case for Charlie (Martin Freeman), a Brooklyn librarian and single man in his 40s who is the protagonist of the indie romantic comedy “Ode to Joy.” Charlie suffers from cataplexy, a medical condition that causes him to fall asleep when overcome with strong emotions, particularly joy. To get an idea of what we’re during with, the opening scene shows Charlie passing out in the middle of his sister’s wedding. While this is embarrassing, it’s nothing compared to the danger he find himself in when he is overcome standing on some cement steps and, later, on a bridge. 

As outlandish as this plot may sound to some, it’s actually based in reality, as the basis for Max Werner’s screenplay came from an episode of the popular radio program “This American Life” in which several people afflicted with cataplexy are profiled. “Their experiences were so specific, yet there was something that was relatable for everybody, because they had to modulate the degree to which they experienced emotions, how they allowed the outside world affect them,” director Jason Winer explained during a recent phone chat with EV. “I saw in it an absolutely unique obstacle for a romantic comedy that I had never seen before.”

Indeed, the misgivings Charlie feels before taking a chance with the fiery Francesca (Morena Baccarin) aren’t complete alien. She ends up in the library after boyfriend takes her there to break up, as he believes she wouldn’t dare make a scene in such a location. In a shocking twist, she does it anyway, and in the process of doing damage control, Charlie ends up developing a crush. With a few exceptions, they have a pretty decent first date, at least until he gets excited at the prospect of daytime sex and ends up in the hospital. In order to preserve himself without being a bad guy, Charlie makes the decision to set Francesca up with his own brother, Cooper (Jake Lacy). 

Although Cooper is now with the woman Charlie is secretly in love with, the relationship between the brothers is remarkably supportive, and to return the favor, Cooper introduces him to Bethany (Melisa Rauch), Francesca’s hilariously underwhelming co-worker. Next to Freeman, Rauch is the MVP of the film, as Bethany plays The Cranberries’ “Zombie” on the cello and attempts to be sexy in reindeer panties. Winer spoke of the casting of this brilliant character actress, whose role here is almost a 180 from her best-known character, Bernadette on “The Big Bang Theory.”

“Melissa was particularly adept. She’s so funny and he’s such a comedic assassin and she knows exactly what she wants to do with the character. She always starts with the voice of the character in terms of creating it. I was a huge fan of hers from seeing her film ‘The Bronze,’” he gushed. “And I knew we needed an actress that could completely create a character from scratch for this. And I had never seen her do exactly this, but I believed in her ability to create the character from the, from the open-toed sandals up.”

Something Winer and Werner do very well here is balance the light and the dark. Despite plenty of lighthearted moments, Charlie is never far from being hurt, both emotionally and physically. There’s also a subplot involving Francesca coming to terms with her aunt Sylvia’s (another wickedly funny character actress, Jane Curtin) terminal cancer. As Winer explained, good casting is key when it comes to walking that fine line between comedy and tragedy.

“That [storyline] provides a lot of the dramatic depth of what [Francesca] is dealing with, but the character [of Sylvia] is written in this really snappy, energetic, positive way. And we cast Jane Curtin, who is such a funny actress to play against what could otherwise be heavy or tragic, so we’ll always going for that balance.”

While it would have been easy to have made Charlie an object of ridicule, Freeman brings some real pathos to the role, particularly when Charlie opens up about how his condition has been an obstacle to his making a truly intimate connection with a woman. The more he denies himself, the more his emotions swirl, and all of this leads to a climatic moment that involves his falling over a bridge. According to Winer, this scene could have been a lot less dramatic if it wasn’t for his limited budget, of all things. Originally conceived as a studio film, “Ode to Joy” became a lesson in how to make the most of a limited budget.

“That scene was originally designed to be on the dock at the park level, but it was really expensive to shoot there. It was originally intended that he fall into water,” explained the director. “But then we discovered if we played it on the promenade above it was so much cheaper as a location and it actually looked even more beautiful because it gives you more of a vista looking across the water at Manhattan. And then we thought, ‘Oh my God, it’s so much more dangerous if he tumbles over the edge, and is threatened with falling into traffic.’”

Next up for Winer is ‘Perfect Harmony,” a comedy series he executive produced and directed that is set to premiere on NBC this fall. He explained how his experience in television prepared him to helm an indie feature.

“I think what I cultivated in shooting TV over the years, be it ‘Modern Family’ or ‘Life in Pieces’ or ‘Single Parents,’ is you have to be really fast. You have to be efficient, you have to be right and you have to be right quick. So, it translated really well into the experience of making a smaller movie like this where you only have 18 days, and you have to create that sense of ensemble and bring a group of people together and get them all pulling in the same direction… It applied here. It was fun.”

Ode to Joy” opens Aug. 9 in select theaters and VOD.