All in Film Review
While the film normalizes these fetishes, it also finds a great amount of humor in them. The film is cut up into the stories of several couples, who each have different fantasies and needs in the bedroom that aren't always satisfied. One couple experiments with role play, but the husband takes it too far when he tries to heighten the tension by making it into an acting exercise.
Prostitutes Sin-Dee and Alexandra (Rodriguez and Taylor) are friends who are catching up on Christmas Eve, the day that Sin-Dee is released from a 28 day stint in prison for possession. She learns that her pimp beau has been cheating on her with a cisgender woman and goes on a tear through LA trying to find him.
Crimmins' sets were a mix of highly volatile lessons on the politics of the United States and diatribes about the unjust practices of the world at large. Though Crimmins never hit is huge like Leary, Poundstone, or Wright, he did own several comedy clubs, and he churned out seasoned veterans who have now been doing stand-up for twenty plus years. He is seen as a mythical creature that chain smokes constantly, drinks like a pirate, and spits out his message in a quick string of expletives.
Alone and embittered, our main character Will (Clement) has to learn how to balance his new life with raising his twin daughters, having a new relationship with his ex, writing a new novel, and engaging with a literature professor from Columbia who throws him for a loop. Threaded together by Will's drawings, this little indie comedy fuses together the drama of a mixed family, and the absurdity of what life throws at us.
These prominent TV actors actually do show a certain amount of control and craft to their performances, but it's truly the chemistry between the characters that makes this film watchable. Ellis and Coupe are great as two asymmetrical sisters, whose banter make for the best character development of the film, and create an ending that asks bigger questions than most indie films dare ask.
She worries for the fate of the infant, and seemingly knows more than everyone, though everyone tells her she could be endangering the child's life. It's a very edgy movie, from beginning to end, culminating in tragedy.
Sam is at a loss at understanding how her life has been unexpectedly changed. At the same time a student of hers learns that she is pregnant, and has to adjust from her previous goal of getting into college, and also raising a child. Both try to understand their limitations and new outlooks on life with the addition of a child.
Two years ago he wrote a badass martial arts movie, paying homage to the great eighties films of the past. Between the video tape analogue feel of the opening, and the constant one-liners, I am confident that others would say he reached his goal. He funded the project on Kickstarter, and passed the original goal.
The premise is obviously great for laughs, but the real star of the film is sweet little Rohan Chand as Chaitanya Chopra, a precocious nine year old who just wants to be a friend to this middle aged man , who he is competing against. Between his wide, glassy eyed stare, his squeaky, cute voice, and his adept delivery of each punchline, he is the perfect comedic sidekick to Bateman's antics.
Fashion icon Iris Apfel is an interesting figure in a world that already has its share of oddities. Famous for fusing together the world of high fashion and the bargain bin, throughout the film you watch as she moves about in the world of high class, high fashion magnates, as well in the very streets where she often buys her bracelets and bangles. As a fashion icon she is unique, in that she doesn't design or have a brand in the world of fashion.
Since then he has made many animated shorts, all relying on the same themes and motifs: destruction, beauty, meandering, the viciousness of life, the exacting nature of time, etc. Though there is something utterly menacing and frank in his shorts, they generally rely on narrative tension, and bring you into a world that makes you uncomfortable, but also satiates a part of you that wants to hear you aren’t the only crazy one in existence.
What we are meant to understand from this film is that if you are in a relationship that started when you were a teenager, it is doomed. Completely and totally. Not only is said relationship doomed, but seriously emotional and ridiculous things will happen if you want to stay in it, like say, you will physically injure one another, fight, or get so drunk you are put in a situation where you might be raped.
Her husband picks up the slack as a stay at home dad (Messina) which puts pressure on their relationship. Their rift and subsequent separation leads Alex into a downward spiral as she tries to balance her family and work life, a new romance, and a flighty sister who arrives to stir up the action. The actress who plays the sister, Katie Nehra, actually co-wrote the screenplay for the film along with Jessica Goldberg and Justin Shilton.
Key touchstone moments in Spinney's life make up the meat of the film, including him meeting his future wife, a trip to China in the eighties, his tempestuous relationship with a director, and his commitment to excellence throughout his career. Spinney is a very interesting figure in the world of children's entertainment, though there aren't many faults seen throughout the film.
While not every point is completely fleshed out throughout the film, each case study serves the overall thread of the film, which is to show that teen films exist because of a societal need. Teenagers are the most disregarded, misunderstood group in our society. They themselves can't fully explain, or understand the range of emotions that they go through.
Though Hunt is an admirable professional, she's green when it comes to writing and directing. Her writing, particularly, is trying to prod at a feeling that she simply hasn’t captured. The tired stereotype of the overwrought professional woman is boring and here it's almost nonsensical. The world of writing has yielded some interesting characters in the past, but Hunt's over analytical, pretentious publishing exec never nears the levels of empathetic response that she believes she deserves.
These flashbacks center around Mia’s on-again-off-again relationship with boyfriend Adam (Blackley), which pushes the film more towards relationship drama than supernatural drama. Though much of what makes this a tearjerker lies in Mia's ties to her family (and is the main conflict within the film) the action keeps coming back to this relationship.
Between the ten or so people interviewed, it becomes clear that they see hotlines as a way to be open about yourself, in a time where the internet lets you be anything. The people on the other end of these calls are not alter egos who are there to listen, end the call, and go about their lives, but listeners who are impacted by everyday human interaction.
"Odd Thomas" isn't an odd choice for adaptation. It's quirky, adventurous, popular, and relies on the supernatural. It would have been better utilized if not in an indie setting, best exemplified by the less than perfect effects. Some are really spot on, but there's a lot of computer generated stuff that looks ugly and half-assed. The plot is also rather meager, as it uses the same twist twice in the film, to a lesser effect the second time.
