By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.5 cats
Director: Hal Hartley
Starring: D.J. Mendel | Danielle Meyer | George Feaster | James Rich | Miho Nikaido | Penelope Lagos
Country: united_states
Year: 2013
Running time: 59
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1922685/combined
Thom says: “I’ve followed Hal Hartley’s career quite closely & had seen all his feature-length films sans FLIRT (1995) & SURVIVING DESIRE (1993) & have loved some of them including TRUST, AMATEUR, HENRY FOOL, & FAY GRIM. Others haven’t been memorable but he’s back in top form here. Our hero Joseph (D.J. Mendel, who has appeared in many Hartley films, is perfect here) is a very busy man as we see him progress through his many appointments with great aplomb. While
somewhat down on his luck his serious drive is heartfelt and winning. He’s a drummer, a theatre & film director, & an inventor who is trying to form a production company for European windows in the United States. Throughout his breakneck day he runs across friends, acquaintances, & business associates that he has to deal with. He’s also just broken up with his squeeze & must find a place to stay. He’s also a writer trying to publish his novel. Hartley’s deadpan trademark humor comes through loud and clear. But, finally what drew me to the film the most was the quality of the character Joseph, who is someone rare in films, someone that I would love to be: talented, remarkably friendly and responsible who goes out of his way to support and help those he connects with on all levels. Early on in the film he meets a woman who is deciding whether to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge. Later in the day he learns that someone indeed has jumped to their death and he does all he can to find out if it was the woman he met earlier. He has no negative qualities thus showing character rarely seen in today’s film world. 4.5 cats”