American Ultra

Title: American Ultra

Director: Nima Nourizadeh

Released: 2015

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Topher Grace, Connie Britton, Walton Goggins, John Leguizamo, Bill Pullman, Tony Hale

Plot: Stoner Mike (Eisenberg) is content with his life in the backwater town of Liman, West Virginia were he works as a convenience store clerk with plans to propose to his longterm girlfriend Phoebe (Stewart) despite his plans being constantly self-sabotaged by his panic attacks. Little does he know that he’s also a sleeper government agent, whose just been reactivated when his former handler (Britton) learns that he is to be eliminated by her rival Yates (Grace) as part of a clean up program. 

Review: What is it about Max Landis that seems to instantly irk certain members of the critical / blogging community? Is it because he’s perhaps had more doors opened to him due to his father being cult director John Landis or the fact that he so openly flaunts this blood connect rather than taking a pen name like Joe Hill (Son of Stephen King)? What ever the reason the mere mention of his name being attached to a project for some reason seems to raise the same kind of destain that M. Night Shyamalan or Eli Roth being attached to a project does.

Personal gripes aside though its hard to see why Landis creates this kind of reaction, especially considering how his body of work as both a writer and director of the rather fantastic shorts “The Death and Return ofSuperman” and “Wrestling Isn’t Wrestling” have shown him to be one of the more original if occasionally unfocused minds currently working since he burst onto the scene with his script for “Chronicle” and this is what we find again with this film.

One of a number of scripts sold on the back of the success of “Chronicle” here he teams up with Director Nima Nourizadeh who previously directed the millennial party movie “Project X” and this time gets to build upon those brief moments of chaos and carnage with the first stoner action hero who might also be the most dangerous man with a spoon!

An interesting concept and one certainly added to with Landis’ unique style as we are introduced to Mike who despite being a stoner isn’t exactly a slacker as he holds down a job working at the local convenience store working on his comic aswell as towards being able to propose to his girlfriend Phoebe who he sees as being the best thing in his life, who he is also paranoid will leave him especially when he self-sabotages their planned trip to Hawaii with his panic attacks.

While the expected path for the film to take would be to have Mike suddenly turn into a badass once he’s activated and all his skills implanted in him by the Ultra program become available to him. But unlike the likes of “The Long Kiss Goodnight” what we get instead is Mike suddenly finding himself able to defend him using his implanted skills and knowledge while at the same time having no clue as to why he is able to do any of it. This was something I found to be kind of jarring the first time I watched the film were for some reason it didn’t seem to sit with me. Upon re-watching it though this time with knowledge of what to expect I found that the experience this time much more enjoyable.

Of course Eisenberg himself much like Topher Grace is far from your traditional action hero and that itself is part of the charm here to see him utilising household objects to maim opponents or pulling off far fetched trick shots using a frying pan to ricochet a gunshot into his target. Its outlandish for sure but there is something so enjoyable in watching these action scenes unfolding, especially with Eisenberg able to tap into this cold and unflinching side whenever his training kicks in and he enters into what could almost be considered a badass autopilot. Balancing out these burst of violence though is his believable relationship which sees him reuniting with former co-star and onscreen love interest Stewart which was certainly welcome after how well they played off each other in “Adventureland” and it was great to see them being able to recapture that chemistry here aswell.

Topher Grace gives a fantastic villainous turn as CIA Agent Yates whose Napoleon complex has him acting the tough guy by hiding behind the many resources available to him, while certainly riding on a power trip gain from his position. This means that we get to see him flying off the handle frequently while refusing to admit even to himself that the situation is quickly escalating out of his control, let alone the clean up operation is really a thinly veiled cover for him wanting to get back at his rival agent Lasseter.

The action throughout though is fantastic especially with Mike often switching off as his training takes over, while the bursts of graphic violence scattered throughout certainly keep things interesting while reminding the viewer that Mike isn’t doing a lot of these things because he can, but because its been what he’s been re-wired to do. At the same time Yates has his own group of killers to match Mike’s skills including Walton Goggins aptly named Laugher who constantly giggles to himself as he goes about his work. Still like we saw in “Chronicle” and “Mr. Right” Landis really knows how to write an original action sequence and this is once again the situation here, though the black light room fight was probably a misstep as it soon becomes something of a migraine to sit though.

Despite having some colourful characters the film does at times feel like it pacing is more plodding than it should be, especially when it comes to the sections based around Mike’s past which certainly could have benefited from being more streamlined than an excuse for trippy visuals. This kind of distracted writing has plagued a lot of Landis’ scripts and again its the same case here but when this film is working its a lot of fun. Perhaps if Nourizadeh had been able to clean up Landis’ script this might have been something a lot more special than it ultimately ends up being but at the same time there is still enough there to make it worth giving a watch even if its not the film it could have perhaps been.

School Daze

Title: School Daze

Director: Spike Lee

Released: 1988

Starring: Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito, Tisha Campbell, Kyme, Joe Seneca, Art Evans, Ellen Holly, Ossie Davis, Samuel L. Jackson

Plot: Morehouse College a leading and historically black college serves as the battleground for several cliques as their individual causes leads them frequently in to conflict with each other.

Review: Drawing from his own college days here Spike Lee follows up the success of his debut “She’s Gotta Have It” by again working with an all black cast, something which was certainly more of a key aspect to the film back when it was released while giving us a film which juggles multiple interconnecting storylines to craft a picture of campus life.

Opening to Vaughn (Fishburne) leading one of his anti-apartheid demonstrations as he continually makes himself a pain to the school administrators with his demands that they along with his fellow students divest from South Africa. At the same time he also has an ongoing rivalry with Julian (Esposito) who heads up the Gamma Phi Gamma fraternity.

The Gamma Phi Gamma are certainly a random bunch with Julian insisting on being referred to as Dean Big Brother Almighty while enforcing a dog theme on his pledges referred to as “Wannabees” as they are lead around on dog leads while on any given moment being asked to drop to all fours or engage in one of their stomp chant sessions. Amongst the Wannabees is Vaughn’s cousin Darrell aka “Half-Pint” here played by Spike Lee who continues to show off his acting skills after memorably playing Mars in “She’s Gotta Have It” and its again the oddball that we see him playing here as the most downtrodden of the wannabees.

As to be expected anytime we have someone pledging for a frat humiliation is not to be far behind and its once again the case for Half-Pint and the other pledges as they find themselves being put through ever more random tasks to earn their place in the fraternity and it strange that with this group of characters he chooses to have them played so comically over the top when everyone else is played so straight. Still they make for a fun distraction to break away from the constant fighting and drama of the other groups, even if towards the end it seems more cruel for the pledge than you have to think it would be worth going through.

While it might have been enough for Lee to focus on the clashes between these two groups, we also have the clash between the Gamma Ray’s who match the dog theme of the frat with their own cat meows which they work into their chants especially when antagonising the non-Greek co-eds mainly over their skin colour and hair which Lee here memorably works into a homage to his love of MGM Musicals by having the two groups randomly burst into the big musical number “Straight and Nappy” whose music and lyrics were composed by Lee’s father Bill Lee. True perhaps this number is not as polished as those he is trying to homage, but its sudden appearance in the film really is one of the high points here.

Lee’s general refusal to stick within the usual framework for this kind of movie really brings something new to the film as he’s clearly shooting with his own rules, hence if he wants to have a random musical moment he’ll have one, while the big football game is not shot from the stands but rather based around the reactions of the crowd as they become more frenzied the worst the team loses.

An intresting mainstream debut for Lee who certainly doesn't hold back on his experimental side as he crafts a unique tale of college life if one infused with his own personal politics this is still an enjoyable and inventive watch. 

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Title: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Released: 2015

Starring: Thomas Mann, Olivia Cooke, RJ Cyler, Nick Offerman, Molly Shannon, Jon Bernthal, Connie Britton, Massam Holden

Plot: Greg (Mann) is a high-schooler who along with his best friend Earl (Cyler) share a love of cinema which they celebrate through their movie parodies. Things change for him though when he is forced to befriend Rachel (Cooke) a classmate and former childhood friend who has recently diagnosed with leukemia.

Review: What happened to the American indie? Once a sub-genre which showed such promise and originality only to disappear almost as quickly as it exploded into the movie watching conscious. Perhaps it could be traced to the rise of Mumblecore which saw film student hipsters believing that every thought which tumbled out of their heads and should be preserved on screen as what could be mistaken as a pretentious attempt to clone “Clerks” or “Slacker”. Whatever it was it was with the one two punch of this film and “Dope” I was honestly left feeling as the credits rolled on this film that perhaps we are starting to see the genre rise once more.

Of course I missed this film during its original release no doubt thanks to overwelming presence of the more minor sick teen girl film “Fault In Thier Stars” and meaning that I am of course only now catching it now following a recommendation from both Jess (French Toast Sunday) and Kim (Tranquil Dreams / Game Warp) that I should watch it.

Right from the start its established that Greg is something of an outsider as he refers to best friend Earl as being his “co-worker” and even though he still views other people at his school of being more of an outsider than himself such as the white wannabe rapper Ill Phil (Holden) as he is happy just doing his own thing than joining one of the social cliques. This outsider feeling is equally carried across in his love for classic cinema which refreshingly isn’t some “Dawson's Creek” style trope where they spend the film over analysing cinema for deeper meanings but instead just for the sheer enjoyment of these films after being introduced to them as kids by Greg’s father (Offerman) and more importantly the ability to parody them.

These parody films are shot in a style reminiscent of “Be Kind Rewind” as they rework the titles to fit in with their unique reinterpretation for these films, in turn giving us such wonderful random hints of these films they are making from the brief clips we see from the likes of “A Sockwork Orange” (A Clockwork Orange) and “2.48pm Cowboy” (Midnight Cowboy) with no genre or director seemingly safe from their satirical eye as we see Greg imitating Herzog in “Burden of Dreams” or as they rename it “Burden of Screams”. These moments providing a fun sub-plot throughout the film while nicely setting up the finale.

While the main meat of the film unsurprisingly is in the relationship between Greg and Rachel this is not a love story in any shape or form, but instead refreshing about the friendship they share and how she shapes his outlook forcing him to deal once more with the world around him, rather than shutting it out as he currently has been doing when we first meet Greg as he believes that it will save him having to deal with it. The pair despite their initial reservations at essentially being forced to hang out together soon fading as they discover that this might have more in common than they first thought.

Because of the platonic nature of their relationship we never have this fear that she will be what breaks up the Greg and Earl’s friendship as she instead becomes this hip edition to their group as she handles her hair loss by donning a bubblegum pink wig. Credit going to Cooke who actually shaved her head for the role and even though we can see she is getting sicker as the film goes on, we still have a contradictory narration from Greg who assures she is going to live, which of course does little to stop us still being put through the wringer towards the end of this film. Gomez-Rejon showing a quirky confidence behind the camera which makes it only the more surprising that coming off “American Horror Story” that he’d been hiding this almost Wes Anderson style world view and which is certainly present here, while still retaining enough of his own originality to not make it seem like a clone of Anderson’s style.

The young cast are all equally fantastic with Mann convincingly able to pull of the narration which is so essentially the backbone to the film. At the same time the supporting cast as equally strong with Rachel’s mother (Shannon) choosing to handle her daughter’s illness through the bottom of a bottle, while Greg’s own home life is none the less fractured with his oddball psychiatrist father working through more than a few problems of his own, while the almost monologue style of speech he uses makes the casting of Nick Offermann only the more perfect.

A film which truly reminds me of the golden period of the American Indie scene (99-04) as here we get a story and plotting which actually feels fresh and original and most importantly free from being burred under an avalance of Smaltz that it might have been as a mainstream feature. Hopfully this is a sign of things to come as I for one certainly wouldn’t mind seeing more films like this than another “Hannah Climbs the Stairs.

This is 40

Title: This Is 40

Director:  Judd Apatow

Released: 2012

Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Maude Apatow, Iris Apatow, John Lithgow, Megan Fox, Chris O’Dowd, Jason Segel, Melissa McCarthy, Graham Parker, Albert Brooks, Charlyne Yi, Lena Dunham

Plot: Pete (Rudd) and Debbie (Mann) are both on the verge of turning 40 and both struggling to deal with what it means to each of them, while at the same time trying to handle the fact their businesses are falling apart, their kids are nuts and everything is threatening to fall apart.

Review: As the sequel / spin off to “Knocked Up” at first this seems like an unusual movie to follow on the surprise success of the film which still remains a better guide for preparing first time fathers than any of supposed guides on the subject with its message of your screw up but your find yourself in the end.  Still clearly feeling that Alison and Ben’s story had been told and perhaps also due to the fact that he had cast his own wife and daughters as Debbie and her daughters Sadie (Maude Apatow) and Charlotte (Iris Apatow) which I have to imagine is cheaper than to pay for either Seth Rogan or Katherine Heigl to come back for a sequel so now the focus is switched to Pete and Debbie.

While “Knocked Up” dealt with impending parenthood, this film chooses to deal with the pressures of parenthood and generally getting older with Pete struggling to deal with the fact that his life is essentially no more sorted despite as his record label is struggling while his father pesters him for handouts. Debbie meanwhile is just struggling to deal with the fact that she is getting older, seeing her impending 40^th birthday as a sign that she has become an old lady and can therefore no longer be the hip woman she feels she still is while equally worried that her surprise pregnancy might prove to the breaking point for her and Pete’s relationship.

Despite seeming like their relationship was generally solid in “Knocked Up” they continue to work well as characters here even if Apatow is essentially creating a bunch of issues for these characters for the purpose of this film and yet it still works thanks largely to the natural chemistry between Rudd and Mann both actors who thrive when given natural comedy to work with, rather than humour which has to be setup. At the same time as both characters have their own separate worlds which enables them to function both together and apart while unquestionably being one of the main reason this film runs a lot longer than it really needs to as Apatow attempts to juggle multiple plot threads such as their attempts to deal with equally useless employees at their businesses or the pressures that each of them are facing with their 40^th approaching.

Thankfully these numerous subplots are largely as fun as the intractions between Pete and Debbie, with Debbie trying to find out who is stealing money from her boutique which lets face it any excuse to include Charlyne Yi in your film is always going to be a welcome one, while she is probably one of the more random characters to be carried across at the same time, with her character having been just one of Ben’s stoner friends in “Knocked Up”  and here is thankfully none the less more random. On the other hand Megan Fox turns up as essentially the token hot chick Desi making this really just another paycheck for her, especially when the hardest thing her character has to do is put up with the skin crawling pick up routine of Jason Segal’s personal trainer, a character whose I was less than thrilled about seeing return here, much like whenever I see Segal’s name associated with anything and here its none the less of a car crash of Segal thinking he’s either more charming / funny than he is.

An enjoyable experience much like its predecessor the run time is unquestionably ambitious and meaning that it might outstay its welcome for some, but at the same time it has a good energy and amongst the first world problems, pop culture refrences and aging generation x observations it still feels a lot more fresh than a lot of the comedies of late and a story I would like to see a part 3 for even if it’s unclear were the story can go from here more so when he’s already addressed getting older with this film, but I’d be interested to see as and when he gets around to continuing this story.

Wish I Was Here

Title: Wish I Was Here

Director:  Zach Braff
Released: 2014
Starring: Zach Braff, Josh Gad, Ashley Greene, Kate Hudson, Joey King, Mandy Patinkin

Plot: Aidan (Braff) is a struggling actor living in LA while being supported by his wife Sarah (Hudson) and relying on his father Gabe (Patinkin) to send his kids to a good school.  However Aiden finds himself forced to examine his life when his father’s cancer returns.

Review:  Coming ten years after his critically acclaimed indie hit “Garden State” this follow up is probably better known for the controversy Braff caused by trying to use Kickstarter to fund part of the film after being inspired by the success of the “Veronica Mars” campaign to try the same for this film. It’s still unclear why everyone was so upset by this move, perhaps believing that Braff should be able to fund his own movie but yet these same people have little concern about raising funds to bring back MST3K which had a decent run to begin with.

Once again here Braff plays an actor (way to branch out) though here it’s clear that things aren’t exactly going according to plan as he goes from one failed audition to the next all while his wife Sarah is forced to work a tedious job in data entry to pay the bills while also being forced to share a cubicle with her douchbag co-worker who constantly makes inappropriate jokes about his penis. Despite the comfortable setup Aiden has for himself there is a sense of him feeling lost and without purpose, especially with his acting career having seemingly stalled and is only thrown into further confusion when his father stops funding the expensive Jewish school his kids had been attending and leading Aiden first of all on a misguided attempt to home school before ultimately re-examine what he wants to do with his life.

Despite clearly aiming for the same element of indie cool that his debut had it’s ultimately a missed bag of ideas that we ultimately end up with here as he drags his kids Grace (King) and Tucker (Gagnon) along with him on his journey of self-discovery, while his daughter deals with life outside of the tight restraints of her Jewish school, a situation she chooses to deal with by shaving her head and in doing so spends the rest of the film wearing a bright pink wig. Tucker meanwhile…..well not a lot changes for him as seemingly its enough for him to just be the bratty younger brother.

Elsewhere Aidan has to also help reunite his brother Noah (Gad) and father the two having drifted apart under Gabe’s continual criticism of his son, which has seemingly now turned Noah into a slovenly shut in. Sadly Gad is sorely under used here, especially when he so much fun when he is on the screen making demands for a Lego Death Star to babysit the kids or getting in an argument with his neighbour (Greene) over whether she should be classed as a furry while at the same harbouring feelings for her he’s seemingly only able to show via showing up in his own costume at Comic-con leading to one of the more original sex scenes ever.

While the key theme of the film is clearly about the discover of self, here Braff also appears to be asking the question of when if ever is it okay to let your dreams die, in this case Aiden’s refusal to give up on his acting career. With Aiden though so self-focused on his own journey it does at time feel that we are watching Braff play the cool babysitter running around with someone else’s kids rather than his own. At the same time Aiden frequently drifts off into “Brazil” inspired daydreams where he is running around as what appear to be a medieval astronaut, which Braff attempts to nail some importance on, but largely these come off more as whims and left off plot devices which could have gone somewhere but ultimately never do, something all the more frustrating when such importance seems to be placed upon them.  

Despite the plotting issues which run throughout the film it is another great cast which Braff has assembled here with Joey King once again proving herself a charming young actress and certainly a talent to watch. The downside though is that despite having a great cast, the script never gives many of them anything particularly interesting to do especially as in the case of Hudson who spends most of the film outside of her harassment plot line pushed to the back of the film and there mainly to provide the moral support and be the rock of her relationship with Aiden. Mandy Patinkin meanwhile is on hand to provide food for thought, but gives a very sedate performance even outside of his character dying from cancer, it feels like he was autopilot for the most part here.  

Outside of the issue the film is enjoyable enough, though lacking in the same spark which made “Garden State” such a memorable indie classic while at the same time leaving little to discover on a rewatch, especially when things generally happen around the characters as they move towards the inevitable conclusion of the film which you will no doubt see coming early on. Still as the kind of movie that you throw on a lazy Sunday you could do a lot worse while making me curious to see what Braff does next and whether “Garden State” was the fluke many now seem contempt to proclaim it as being.

The Squid and he Whale

Title: The Squid and The Whale

Director: Noah Baumbach

Released: 2005

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney, Owen Kline, Anna Paquin, William Baldwin, Halley Feiffer, David Benger, Adam Rose

 

Plot: Set in 1986 Brooklyn where Walt (Eisenberg) and his younger brother Frank (Kline) attempt to deal with the fallout from their parents’ divorce.

Review:  One of a series of smaller independent films startng Jesse Eisenberg along with “Adventureland” released during the period in which his star was unquestionably on the rise, especially after the success of both “Zombieland” and “The Social Network” while at the same time this was one of the last films in the golden period for American independent cinema. This is also a film which when it was released there seemed to be a time were all everyone wanted to talk about was this film, over for it over the years seemingly become all but forgotten perhaps due to Baumback remaining so fiercely a part of the independent scene as he drifted into making mumblecore films such as “Greenberg” and the equally underrated “Frances Ha”.

Produced by fellow indie darling Wes Anderson, this semi-autobiographical tale would at the time be seen as a real breakout film for Baumbach, no doubt due to the fact that despite the plot hardly sounding like the most fun time, somehow manages to craft here a story which is both frequently funny as it is engrossing. Here the boys are shown growing up with parents who are both academics and writers. Their father Bernard (Daniels) a former big name writer, struggling to deal with his fading celebrity who now teaches while frequently critical and opinionated when it comes to the work of others in particular their mother Joan (Linney) who he is especially keen to critise as her own writing career starts to take off as his own remains seemingly stalled.  Walt meanwhile hero worships his father, frequently recycling his opinions to impress girls, while struggling to find his own area to excel in especially as he feels that he has to live up to his father’s legacy, regardless of the fact that he has been all but forgotten by most.

 

Once again channelling his brand quiet awkwardness Eisenberg once again gives us another great performance and one which never seems to carry across to his more mainstream films, which often feel like he is being forced to push the humour rather than rely on a more natural humour which is what he often does best as especially seen here especially as he plays Walt the wannabe academic. Often it feels like few opinions that Walt has are his own often rechurning his father’s opinions regards of if he has any reference for these opinions, disregarding Charles Dickens “Tale of Two Cities” as a minor work while raving about Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” despite not having read either and yet when caught out by calling Kafka Kafka-esq he is somehow able to charm his way out of the situation. This pursuit of acclaim also sees Walt trying to pass off a Pink Floyd song of as his own for the school talent contest, which when he is caught out serves to highlight the increasing divide between his parents. His father’s influence however doesn’t just stretch to opinions as he soon starts questioning his relationship with his girlfriend Sophie (Feiffer) after Bernard promotes the idea of sleeping with other women while his still young to his son, while in many ways begrudging his own life choices.

 

Elsewhere Frank whose seemingly happy charting his own path with dreams of playing professional tennis seemingly takes his parents’ divorce the worst as he starts secretly drinking and more shockingly engaging on a campaign of public masturbation which the less said about is probably the better. Such extreme actions coming with no real kind of explanation though other than perhaps a feeling of being overlooked during the ongoing turmoil with this being his attempt at getting attention especially when everyone is seemingly caught up in their own issues to focus on this youngest family member.

 

Unquestionably it’s a great cast which Baumbach assembles here with Daniels really working his dramatic skills as he refuses to accept that he is ever at fault, while embarking on a relationship of sorts with one of his students Lilli (Paquin) which screams mid-life crisis and who more creepily Walt is also trying to pick up at the same time. Its interesting to think at the same time that this role at one point had been considered for Bill Murray making me wonder if the role would have been played any differently had he took the role, especially when Daniels plays the role with such a hair trigger that the smallest thing can seemingly set off Bernard as we frequently see throughout the film. Equally on fun form is William Baldwin as the new age tennis coach Ivan with the habit of calling people brother and whom Joan embarks on a relationship with while generally seemingly like divorce really works for her, especially when it seems like a continual stream of positives that she gets from the divorce.

 

Due to its short runtime and tight editing the film never drags while its catalogue of awkward situation and interesting interactions keep things interesting, while the believability of the characters ensures that it never feels too fantastical especially when dealing with a family as dysfunctional as this while perhaps in many ways making this a spiritual sibling to producer Wes Anderson’s “The Royal Tenenbaums”. At the same time the largely handheld shooting style gives the film as real fluid feel while adding to the indie charms of the film which deserves to be rediscovered rather than left to languish in its current seemingly forgotten status.

Adventureland

Title: Adventureland

Director: Greg Mottola
Released: 2009
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Martin Starr, Ryan Reynolds, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig

Plot: Set in the summer of 1987, were James (Eisenberg) has graduated from Oberlin College with a degree in comparative Literature and looking forward to a summer spent touring Europe before going to New York to study journalism. However these plans are soon sunk when his parents announce that they won’t be able to finance his trip as originally planned. Now faced with having to find a summer job, he soon finds himself working at the local amusement park Adventureland.

Review:  Sometimes it takes just one movie to launch a career, or so it would seem at least for Jesse Eisenberg, who always seemed to be lurking below the radar of the moving going public making films like “Rodger Dodger” and the much underrated “The Squid and the Whale”. That was until the double punch of “Zombieland” and “The Social Network” wich for a period truly launched him into the mainstream. Now while these two films were both undoubtedly great (jaw dropingly so in the case of “The Social Network”), it is the films which he made in between these two career milestones which for myself are the most interesting films and sadly also the most overlooked, especially when it comes to this film.

From the start its clear that James believes that he knows his path in life, having spent his life living in his intellectual bubble which has seemingly also shielded him from the real world until now as he finds himself further shell shocked when his preferred career choice at “Adventureland” of working on “Rides” is rejected in favour of “Games”. A role it soon seems is more hazardous than you would expect especially when employees can be fired for giving away one of the oversized stuffed panda’s, which is less of a problem when most of the games are fixed, so that no one ever wins any of the big prizes, as highlighted by the tour given by his co-worker and fellow intellectual Joel (Starr) while also being introduced to Em (Stewart), whose combination of troubled home life and shared musical tastes makes her a source of instant interest to James.

James himself while not exactly have much in the way of assets outside of his supply of joints which soon proves all he really needs to win over his fellow employee’s, aswell as covering for his shortcomings such as his virginity and bookish naïveté, both things we expect him to loose by the end of this summer, yet it is really the intellectual slacker charm of Eisenberg which makes this character work so well, as he bumbles his ways through casual conversation with Em, while at the same time convincingly discussing the relevance of “Moby Dick” with Joel. The rest of the cast while varying in terms of star power all embody their various characters with Ryan Reynolds and Kristen Stewart proving once more that their best work is found away from their more mainstream projects with Stewart in particular being especially of note, especially as she finds herself more and more frequently tied to her millstone of “Twilights” Bella, she is here on much more enjoyable form, as she oozes a damaged yet unquestionably cool aura which would give even Scott Pilgrims Ramona Flowers a run for her money.

Perfectly capturing the spirit of summer jobs, especially for those of us, whom like myself lived in towns which really were only ever alive during the tourist months and essentially dead the rest of the year and while I never worked in an amusement park, having opted instead to lifeguard at my local swimming pool stopping young kids from drowning themselves on the flumes and generally spending by day inhaling chlorine fumes and having random conversations with my friends, there is something which still rings so true about this movie. For here your summer job, much like my own summer jobs are less about career prospects and more about making money, random conversations with your friends and general misadventures all which form the general focus here, while refreshingly not overplaying the 80’s setting, by keeping it firmly as a background for the story to play out against solely, aswell as an excuse to dig out some of the better tracks of the era, with a particular affection for Lou Reed in particular the laid back tones of “Satellite of Love”.

An interesting follow up to the gleefully crude “Superbad” by crafting a film more in tune with “Dazed and Confused” than the gross out humour of his previous film, as he  marks a decidedly different change in direction if one still set well within the same general territory for director Greg Mottola, as he crafts a much more subtle and thoughtful film, while drawing inspiration from his own summers spent working at an amusement part of the same name in Farmingdale, New York and its these experiences which certainly help to craft a realistic picture of the monotony of the working day, especially not made anymore bearable when forced to listen to the same songs on a constant loop especially when one of those song is the hideous “Rock Me Armadeus” by Falco.

Within the confines of the park Mottola has staffed it with a colourful mixture of characters, who all in their own way help to shape the course of James summer such as the park’s maintenance man Mike (Reynolds) who bizarrely is never seen without his guitar and generally playing on claims of having jammed with Lou Reed. Equally memorable is Bill Hader as the eccentric park manager Bobby, who while more restrained than he was in “Superbad” still provides more than a few memorable moments, especially when getting to invoke his psycho side caused by people littering in the park or just from the general banter with his wife and co-manager Paulette (Wiig).

A fun and laid back indie comedy, it’s refreshing to finally have a comedy which harks back to the memorable dialogue favouring comedies of the 90’s such as “Dazed and Confused” and “Clerks”, rather than resorting to lazy and gross out gags and stoner humour, as Mottola not only gives his cast a chance to shine, but at the same time doesn’t sacrifice the story for the sake of getting extra laughs and while it might have somehow slipped under the radar, a fact which still confuses me even now yet despite this it is still truly worth hunting down.

Election

Title: Election
Director: Alexander Payne
Released: 1999
Starring: Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Delaney Driscoll, Chris Klein, Frankie Ingrassia, Jessica Campbell

Review: Released to little fanfare in 1999, “Election” was considered upon it’s release a box office failure and like its fellow Indie comedy classic “Clerks” only really found its audience when it was later released on VHS / DVD. Still despite being ranked at #61 on Bravo’s 100 funniest movies, it remains something of an indie obscurity with few folks seemingly heard of it let alone seen it, while Director Alexander Payne would later go onto both critical and commercial success with his follow up films “About Schmidt”, the dinner party favourite “Sideways” and the recent Oscar nominated “The Descendents”

Based on the Tom Perrotta novel of the same name released a year before the film, it is the story of high school teacher Jim McAllister (Broderick) who secretly is plotting his revenge against the overachieving and highly vindictive  Tracy Flick (Witherspoon), a student who had earlier in the school year engaged in an affair with Jim’s best friend and fellow teacher Dave, which resulted in him being fired and later divorced by his wife Linda (Driscoll) while Tracy walked away from the scandal free of any form of reprisal or punishment. Now having set her sights on becoming student body president, Jim finally spots his chance for revenge, especially with Tracey being set to run unopposed, something he is quick to put an end to by introducing his own candidate by encouraging  Paul Metzler (Klein) a popular football player currently sitting out the season due to breaking his leg to run for election,  something which Paul surprisingly finds new purpose from.
Unwittingly though Paul has also recently stolen his sister’s girlfriend Lisa (Ingrassia), after she decided that she was just experimenting and not actually gay. In response to this rejection Tammy (Campbell) decides to run for the presidency, determined to get her revenge against her brother and Lisa, while also gaining the anarchy vote for promising to dissolve the student government if she wins and so the race to become student president begins, though with so many personal agenda’s it’s going to be anything but a clean fight.

More than happy to play around with the traditional high school conventions, Payne here crafts a darkly comic film, with nearly all of the characters playing against type, hence Overachiever Tracy is more than willing to do whatever it takes to win the election, frequently coming off like Rachel from “Glee” on crack! A hideously smug creation Witherspoon is perfectly cast to play, as she has a sweet and innocent look yet has the ability to switch styles instantly to show her darker side as soon as things stop going Tracey’s  way, while seemingly armed with a endless supply of plots and schemes to ensure she wins the election from baking 480 customised cupcakes to tearing down her opponents posters in frenzied meltdown.

Meanwhile the traditionally loudmouth Jock, represented here by Paul is a much more thoughtful and even philosophical character, yet at time painfully naïve about what is happening around him, especially when it comes to unwittingly stealing his sisters girlfriend and never actually realizes that Lisa is purely using him to spite his sisters advances. Tammy continues what  would seem to be a family trait for being philosophical and while she represents the outsiders, her personal musings on the world around her and her sexuality frequently providing the moments of indie cool and only further helping to separate this film from other high school films.

Constantly switching between the four main characters, with heavy use of voice overs, Payne truly gets inside the heads of both the candidates as well as Jim whose life is none the less chaotic outside of his vendetta against Tracy, as he harbours feelings for his best friend’s ex-wife with who a potential liaison in a motel, which also starts a downward spiral in his luck when all he receives is a bee sting to the eye, while his plans to swing the outcome of the election and their gradual unravelling only adds to the black humour, as Broderick still manages to charm the audience as the nice guy trying to play it bad, even as his choices only grown increasingly morally dubious, as you question just how low he will sink before he truly hits rock bottom.

Despite seemingly have assembled an all star cast, it is really down to pure good luck on the part of  Director Payne that history has seen his cast’s careers for the most part continue to rise, especially as upon it’s release only Broderick was a big name on the cast, with Witherspoon still yet to become America’s sweetheart, despite coming to the forefront of the public conscious the same year when she also appeared in “Cruel Intentions” meanwhile Klein would become more notable for his appearance in “American Pie” again released the same year as this film, only to soon disappear just as quickly as he had burst onto the scene. The most frustrating piece of casting though would be with Thora Birch, who was originally cast as Tammy only to sadly be replaced by Campbell on the forth day of shooting, following creative differences between herself and Payne, still despite being the second choice Campbell still makes the role her own and only makes it more of a shame that she only had a handful of roles after appearing here.

Seeing how it was released during a golden year for cinema, it’s not too surprising that this film got so overlooked on it’s original release, especially with 1999 being the year that saw the releases of The Matrix, Fight Club, Being John Malkovich, Cruel Intentions and err…. The Boondock Saints. Perhaps if it hadn’t been for the original “American Pie” also being released the same year this would have been the high school movie of choice, but still despite this it is still a darkly comic tale of high school life, while providing some of the cast such as Broderick and Witherspoon to play against type. Needless to say this is one vision of high school which rings more than a little true, without feeling the need to resort to fantasy Esq. Visions of what Hollywood perceives High school life to be like and makes an especially refreshing change to what the Disney machine would have us believe High school to be like, while also reminding us that corruption in politics clearly exists at any level.

Chasing Amy

Title:  Chasing Amy

Director:  Kevin Smith
Released:  1997
Starring: Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, Jason Lee, Dwight Ewell, Kevin Smith, Scott Mosier, Ethan Suplee, Casey Affleck, Jason Mewes Brian O’Halloran, Matt Damon

Plot: New Jersey comic book artists and lifelong friends Holden (Affleck) and Banky (Lee) are on the verge of breaking into the comic book mainstream with their “Bluntman and Chronic” comic book. However things look set to fall apart when Holden falls for Alyssa (Adams), a lesbian who Holden can’t help himself in pursuing even at the risk of his friendship with Banky.

 

Review:  Possibly the most underrated film on Kevin Smith’s directing C.V. perhaps alongside “Jersey Girl” both of which even now stand out from the rest of his films even if they are closer to the tone of his “View Askewniverse” than the likes of “Tusk” and “Red State” which no doubt would rate higher for most Smith fans. Perhaps because they are more emotionally based than the usual brand of pop culture infused onslaughts we have come to expect from him.

If anything this film is certainly one of his most controversial film even with various religious parties not taking too kindly to “Dogma”, it would be his portrayal of the lesbian community let alone the fact he’d made a film in which Holden is able to convert a lesbian which wouldn’t sit well with many, even with Smith calling this film his Sci-fi movie because “You ask any lesbian and there is no way that’s going to happen” he said when questioned about the films message during his first “An Evening With Kevin Smith” DVD. It is also worth noting that many of these digs at the community come from the films idiot in this case Banky and as such essentially lessens how seriously such comments should be taken, especially when they frequently to be being made as a form of self-defence as he finds himself unable to deal with Alyssa affecting his relationship with Holden.

Released following the critical and financial flop which was “Mallrats” which has since gone onto achieving like so many of Smith’s films a cult status. Looking to create something a little closer to his original breakout film “Clerks”. However despite Miramax owners (at the time) Bob and Harvey Weinstein liking the idea they wanted to cast Jon Stewart, David Schwimmer and Drew Barrymore as opposed to Smith’s cast choices which despite not having the same star power as Miramax’s casting choices would enable him to work with his friends who he’s written the film with them in mind. Refusing to fund a film featuring the cast Smith wanted he instead was given a budget of $250,000 (1/24 of his budget for “Mallrats”) with Miramax choosing on if they would distribute the film depending on if they liked it which luckily for Smith they did.

 A unique romantic comedy to say the least, not only because of its lesbian seduction angle but also because here we have a film which features a openly gay black comic book writer who taps into racial tensions to sell more copies of his book, a porn obsessed sidekick with no filter and Smith usual alternative takes on pop culture which includes an argument for “Archie” being gay. However despite this it is still a film with a lot of heart while the relationship between Holden and Alyssa is truly a genuine one and not about looking for cheap shock tactics as it would seem that Smith truly wasn’t aiming to shock but perhaps in some way give another nod to his openly gay brother which he has confessed to doing numerous times in the past, having felt that the gay community were never represented or catered to in movies.

It’s equally interesting that the main issue that Holden and Alyssa face is not in fact her sudden change in sexuality but rather Holden struggling to deal with Alyssa’s proud sexual experimentation, a concern which is only further fuelled by Banky’s intense investigation into her past and in particular how she earned the nickname “Finger cuffs”. Its also interesting that the moment of clarity comes from Silent Bob here, who gives one of his best speeches here as he shares his own experiences of being in Holden’s situation and in many ways represents the fact that help often comes from the least likely of places….in this case a largely mute sidekick.  Here though sexual experimentation is something that is embraced regardless of gender with Banky and Alyssa giving a fun spin on the classic war wounds scene from “Jaws” here trading oral sex injuries instead in an equally scene and one of the few warmer moments they share.

For the established fans the film adds further to Smith’s “View Askewniverse” with connections once again being made to his earlier films. At the same time though some of these links really add some interesting new spins to things such as Shannon (played also by Affleck) from “Mallrats” is named as being a guy who taped himself having sex with Alyssa only to them broadcast the tape on the college campus station, which makes it only the more fitting that the same thing would happen to him in “Mallrats”. Elsewhere Adam’s previous character Gwen in “Mallrats” is also named amongst her sexual experiences. Unfortunately perhaps in a lapse he also names the bookish and shy girlfriend of T.S., Brandi Svenning from “Mallrats” during the sexual injuries scene which adds a whole new (and out of character) angle to her character, though a stumble that Smith no doubt got away with thanks to most audience members not paying that much attention. I know I only on this viewing noticed it and that again was more to do with the fact that I had recently covered “Mallrats” on the “MBDS Showcase” and hence had the name still fresh in my mind.

As Smith has relied more and more on fart and dick jokes to drive his films, this film remains like “Dogma” a nice reminder of what he is capable of when he engages his smarter side which gave us “Clerks” than just taking the easier route to the laughs. It of course only makes it the sadder as his career has progressed that he has only moved further away from making these kinds of films, but hopefully one day he will remember how to write these kinds of films.

Away We Go

Title:  Away We Go

Director: Sam Mendes
Released: 2009
Starring: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Allison Janney, Catherine O’Hara, Jeff Daniels, Paul Schneider, Carmen Ejogo, Chris Messina, Melanie Lynskey, Josh Hamilton, Jim Gaffigan, Maggie Gyllenhaal

Plot: Upon discovering they are expecting their first child Burt (Krasinski) and Verona (Rudolph) find themselves on a unique road trip as they search for the perfect place to start their family.

Review:  Originally I saw this film when it first came out and while I found it watchable back then I can’t say it left the same impression on me that it seemingly left on the critics giving it glowing reviews at the time. So seeing it come up as part of MUBI’s rolling 30 titles I thought I would give it another watch and see if my opinions on it had changed, looking at it as an older and perhaps slightly more cultured movie watcher than I was back then.

Coming off a string of critically popular movies when he came to direct this film, none of which managed to capture the spirit or energy of his movie directing debut “American Beauty” Sam Mendes (outside of that film) hasn’t really been a director that I would name when it comes to naming favorites. This film however sees him making a rare return to his indie film making roots inturn arguably producing his best film since “American Beauty”.

Incase you haven’t guessed already my opinion for this film has really changed in the years which passed and in which I found myself now coming to the film, perhaps more able to relate to the material than I had before having in the meantime had two kids of my own or maybe I was just in the mood for this film, but something this time had changed as I found myself truly caught up in this random road trip in search of the perfect place to settle down.

Opening with perhaps the most unique way any couple has discovered they are expecting a child, as we open to Burt going down on Verona followed by him proceeding to comment on the taste and how apparently the taste can change depending on if the woman is pregnant. How true this is I can’t be sure but it certainly grabs your attention with its raw originality let alone the fact that Mendes has chosen to open his film with an oral sex scene. At the same time though Burt and Verona are far from your typical couple that we have come to expect from this kind of film, with Burt practicing his woodwork as he seems more concerned about what sort of man he will come off as to his daughter than anything seemingly practical in preparing for the arrival of his first child but then this pair are true hipsters that only independent cinema can get away with as this pair are constantly shown to be so much in touch with reality aswell as each other’s emotions than any of the varied characters they encounter on their journey. That being said Krashinski and Rudolph are such likable leads that it’s easy to look past this aspect.

Its really an incredible cast that Mendes has assembled here and through the structure of the film ensures that they all get their moment to shine as they all bring such different things to the film from Verona’s old boss who refers to her breasts as looking like “an old man’s nutsack” when not calling her daughter a dyke. We also have Burt’s pseudo-cousin and new ager “LN” (Gyllenhaal) through to their college friends Tom (Messina) and Munch (Lynskey) who despite their happy and seemingly perfect family life is revealed to be a possible front for some much deeper and heartbreaking issues for the couple. Because we are constantly moving from place to place as the couple travel to Phoenix, Arizona on their way to Verona’s old family home each group of characters are kept to their own geographical location and each location offering a new group to meet with no two being alike it really makes the journey all the more enjoyable, while ensuring that if you don’t like a certain character its not long before their section of the film is over.

Considering that Mendes would return to big budget studio movies with “Skyfall” this film remains a curiosity on his directing credits clearly having got his desire to make smaller films out of his system with this film whose poor audience reception no doubt only further cemented the decision. This film at the same time essentially also provides the high water mark for the golden age of independent cinema, which would never quite be as interesting or original as it was, especially with so many of those who had come up with the scene going on to make bigger movies through the studio system.  While at the same time it’s a simple tale fights well above its weight due to the enjoyable performances and well-constructed scenes which make up the couple’s search.

Unquestionably more enjoyable than my first viewing this really is something of a lost gem and one well worth rediscovering, especially when its arguably Mendes best film since “American Beauty” a high benchmark that to date Mendes has yet to come close to beating.  But here at least he manages to remind us all that a road movie can have wider scope that desert highways and strange back water towns.

Damsels In Distress

Title: Damsels In Distress

Director: Whit Stillman
Released: 2011
Starring: Greta Gerwig, Adam Brody, Analeigh Tipton, Carrie MacLemore, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Hugo Becker, Ryan Metcalf, Billy Magnussen, Caitlin Fitzgerald, Jermaine Crawford, Alia Shawkat, Aubrey Plaza, Zach Woods, Taylor Nichols, Carolyn Farina, Meredith Hagner

Plot: Lily (Tipton) a newly transferred college student is taken under the wing of Violet (Gerwig), Heather (MacLemore) and Rose (Echikunwoke) who run the campus’ suicide prevention centre, while at the same time running numerous schemes to try and improve the campus.

 

Review:  Not only the first film I have seen by director Whit Stillman, it’s also one that I had to watch twice before I sat down to write this review as my first watch of the film left me with mixed feelings,  especially as I knew that there was something about this film I just couldn’t place what it was.

For Stillman this would be his first film after taking a thirteen year break after the release of his previous film “The Last Days of Disco”. Here he appears to have rolled into the same campus that Wes Anderson showed us in “Rushmore”, which perhaps is the best place to start especially when Violet could easily be seen as Max’s female counterpart and more so when his film which seemingly is determined to avoid being any one thing. Not that this a bad thing as the various parts are certainly interesting enough, it just makes it a pain in the ass to review.

Despite looking like a mean girl clique, this group of friends are actually nothing of the sort as they take their work at the campus’ suicide prevention centre like a job rather than a volunteer position, as they offer a sympathetic ear as well as coffee and doughnuts for those in need.  However they don’t stop here as they also date the less attractive men on campus to help boost their confidence and even attempt to clean up one of the more unhygienic dorms by giving the gifts of bars of soap. Of course this is all done in such a surreal style that some of these goals achieved can be missed out, especially when Stillman chooses to shoot the film in the same detached style that Terry Zwigoff brought to his “Ghost World" adaptation.

Unquestionably though its an original vision that Stillman crafts as the girls frequently act like they belong in the 1940’s while at the same time dancing to 90’s dance music such Real McCoy’s “Another Night” which Violet delightfully proclaims “A golden oldie”. Elsewhere the campus fraternities shun the traditional Greek letters in favour of Roman Letters and one were a random Fred and Ginger inspired dance routine can be dropped in randomly with little or no effect to the film. Stillman here like Wes Anderson manages to not only craft this world but more impressively make it believable without the usual feeling of style over substance. That being said the actual plot of the film is frustratingly hard to place in recollection with the film largely consisting of the girls dealing with one incident on campus to the next, combined with the usual issues of unsuitable boyfriends and clashes with the school newspaper amusingly titled “The Daily Complainer” and headed up perfectly by Zach Woods of “Silicon Valley” fame.

Perhaps because Stillman has assembled such a likable, let alone capable cast who embody such fun characters we are able to look past such things as the fact we have spent the last hour and a half essentially watching nothing. That being said this really is Gerwig’s flm and whose background in Mumblecore perhaps makes her more capable of adapting to such free flowing material as this. Here though free of the pretension of that cinematic movement really is able to shine as the group leader, able to motivate them effortlessly to her vision for the campus, let alone leading the campus in their newly created dance craze “The Sambola” which even comes with onscreen directions for wanting to try it for themselves.

Alas the film is not without its flaws as Adam Brody whose appearance is usually the cinematic equivalent of piles and here once more gives us yet another forgettable performance, which perhaps is only noteworthy for how less smarmy it is than normal. At the same time his character could easily have been written out, especially when he serves little purpose ultimately other than to give Gerwig a dance partner for the finale. True the film features other random characters who serve to add little to the plot, but none or given that kind of attention that Brody confusingly receives here.

Certainly an original film to say the least and one which at the same time will unquestionably divide opinions, depending on how coherent you like your storytelling, while the fact that its also a film which is an experience to watch makes it only the harder to review, leaving myself with little to do that recommend you at least give it a watch if anything I mentioned caught your interest, as this is a unique one to say the least.

Youth In Revolt.

Title: Youth In Revolt

Director: Miguel Arteta
Released: 2009
Starring: Michael Cera, Portia Doubleday, Jean Smart, Mary Kay Place, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Long, Ray Liotta, Steve Buscemi, Fred Willard

Plot: Nick Twisp (Cera) in a funk: unable to find a girlfriend while belittled over his love of classic cinema and easy listening records. However after meeting Sheeni, he creates a rebellious alter-ego named Francois Dillinger to help him win her away from her boyfriend.

Review:  Another of those films like "Drive" which was horribly misold to audiences, in this films case it was as another throw away teen comedy, let alone one featuring Zach Galifianakis who at this point was still riding high on the surprise success of “The Hangover”. What we get instead is something a lot more subtle and intelligent, while Galifianakis’s contribution here is little more than a glorified cameo.

Right from the start it’s clear that things are pretty crappy for Nick, as he has to endure his oversexed mother and her string of loser boyfriends while being generally belittled for his eccentric tastes by those around him, making his connection with kindred spirit Sheeni and winning her affections only the more important, while her love of Jean-Paul Belmondo unquestioning plays it part in his creation of his alter-ego, alongside the repeated pounding he gets for a trying be a nice guy as in this world nice guys unquestionably finish last.

Played in many ways like a wilderness years version of “Fight Club” here Cera pulls double duties as Nick which sees him once again working his usual awkward charms, while also getting to play his anarchic and permanently chilled, let alone pencil thin moustache wearing Francois as he constantly switches between the two character while occasionally being both at the same time. It’s a performance that is only heightened by Cera’s dry narration let alone the sheer don’t give a shit attitude of Francois who starts off smashing Nicks records and tossing over cereal bowls to quickly moving onto arson all with little concern for the consequences, especially when they befall Nick, even if he does take a belting for him the majority of the fallout of his actions falls on Nick.

Perhaps because the film features Cera playing a much different kind of role to what have become accustomed to seeing him playing, that the film is as much fun to watch let alone the fact that Francois essentially is Nick’s version of Tyler Durdan only with less of an interest in wide spread anarchy, but instead has more interest causing chaos whenever the opportunity presents itself rather than seeking it out. Luckily here these kinds of situations frequently present themselves, making it all the more baffling that Nick is able to get away with as much as he is.  

While the tone of the movie is frequently an uncomfortable one, especially when it comes to his home life reminisant of “Napoleon Dynamite” it only makes it all the more welcome when the film moves away from these areas and instead focuses on his complex relationship with Sheeni or him being led astray by Francois which also includes him leading Nick into using some truly filthy seduction techniques, during an ill-fated attempt to visit Sheeni at her all girl French speaking boarding school. Director Arteta’s shooting style meanwhile frequently keeps the film interesting as he mixes in random moments of animation, including a fun stop motion opening charting his journey to Jerry’s trailer, while avoiding the angry sailors Jerry has just ripped off shown here as an angry three headed giant.

The downside here though is that the film draws you in with its impressive cast list, only for most of them to be little more than cameo appearance with the exception of Buscemi who is on top shouty form as Nick’s dad who could be mistaken for being a more domesticated version of Seymour from “Ghost World”. Elsewhere Fred Willard gives us his usual stique as Nick’s neighbour and whose odd nature is really worked to its maximum potential.

While wrongly sold as just another summer teen comedy, this film is a lot smarter than you’d expect and one really carried by Cera who previously unseen range demonstrated here, makes me wonder what else he might be hiding in his actor toolbox. At the same time the film has such a fun anarchic spirit which when combined with its indie styling only makes it more of a shame that this film currently remains as under the radar as it does.  True towards the end it does feel like it is spinning its wheels for time, but largely this is a fun and original dark comedy that’s worth hunting down.