Writing for '' Variety '' , David Stratton wrote a negative review of the film upon its release at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival when it was searching for a distributor . Stratton wrote , " An attractive and intriguing premise is given disappointingly mundane treatment in '' Auggie Rose '' , which starts strongly but falters badly in the later going . Names of Jeff Goldblum and Anne Heche probably wo n't be enough to drag a significant amount of theatrical coin out of this one , but vidbin sales are more promising . " However , another '' Variety '' reviewer , Dennis Harvey , gave a positive review a year later following the film 's limited theatrical release . Harvey wrote that the film could have potential as a sleeper hit , praising Goldblum 's performance in particular : " The most entertaining deer-caught-in-the-headlights eyes in showbiz are well deployed here , as Goldblum 's customary air of distracted eccentricity lays bare protag 's simultaneous bewilderment and pleasure at assuming another man 's identity . It 's a lovely , mercurial yet focused perf . " Kevin Thomas of '' The Los Angeles Times '' praised the film , in particular Goldblum and Heche , who he wrote " arguably give their best performances to date . " Thomas wrote that '' Auggie Rose '' has " the earmarks of a sleeper : an unusual and involving premise persuasively and fully realized ... . this modestly budgeted independent production deserves a chance to find a wider audience . " Mick LaSalle of '' The San Francisco Chronicle '' wrote that director Tabak made good use of Goldblum 's talent , writing , " '' Auggie Rose '' is one of those go-out-for-coffee-afterward-and-talk-about-it movies , and those are always welcome . It 's about identity and existential angst and stars that master of psychic dislocation , Jeff Goldblum . In Hollywood films , Goldblum gets to act smirky and amusing . Yet his delivery of lines has often implied a psychological complexity that few filmmakers have bothered to tap . Goldblum always seems to be listening to and weighing his own thoughts ... and then saying them in a rush , lest he think something else and disagree with himself before he 's finished . He is exactly the actor to cast in a role calling for uncertainty and confusion . Writer-director Matthew Tabak had the insight to see Goldblum in this way . " Elvis Mitchell of '' The New York Times '' gave a negative review , writing , " Despite the potential of the material , there is little action to accompany it . In fact , there 's so little going on in '' Auggie Rose '' that the movie begins to feel like a coffeehouse conversation about a movie that 's all about meanings and motif rather than substance and characters . "
2000 Cannes Film Festival
2000 Cannes Film Festival
Auggie Rose