A Disciplinary Exercise Turns into a Fight for Survival

From left: Rian Gordon, Viraj Juneja, Lewis Gribben, 
and Samuel Bottomley in "Get Duked!"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

For his feature filmmaking debut, writer-director Ninian Doff doesn’t waste anytime when it comes to inviting you into the gleefully crazy premise of his British dark comedy, “Get Duked!”  What starts off quick only becomes even more so, and from the first minute, you’re brought into a coming-of-age journey that thrives on delivering the unexpected.

One day, four city boys, Dean (Rian Gordon), Duncan (Lewis Gribben), DJ Beatroot (Viraj Juneja), and Ian (Samuel Bottomley), are brought into the Scottish Highlands for a camping trip competition.  As their time outdoors goes on, they will discover that they’re being followed by a crazed huntsman.

The on-screen bond between the four leads is what draws you in from the beginning, and the way in which they build upon that connection invests you in the hilarity of the strange events that befall them.  They all have distinct personalities that will make you laugh in one way or another, and they create a flawless and engaging camaraderie that always has you entertained.  All four of the main cast members are given their individual moments to impress us with their comedic abilities, but even while doing this, they never try to overshadow each other.  It’s a group effort that pays off in the best possible way, and despite the movie having a sufficient 87-minute runtime, you’ll end up wishing that the movie was just a little longer so that you could spend some more time with these characters.  However, the time that you do spend with them is comedic gold.

The screenplay by Doff gets a bit heavy-handed in the last few minutes as it goes in-depth with its central theme, but the rest of the story is nevertheless an inventive great-outdoors odyssey that offers terrific laughs as the boys find themselves in bonkers situations, with each scenario more ridiculous than the last.  Between the four friends and the eccentric supporting characters that they encounter along the way, this narrative doesn’t leave you wanting in terms of seeing how crazy the world of this movie can become.

With cinematography by Patrick Meller, we’re given breathtaking views of the Scottish Highlands, and the expansiveness of these sights show the intimidation of the grounds that the boys have to cover, all while exhilarating you at the prospect of the twisted adventures that these lands have in store.

As a director, Doff imbues a boundless energy that carries you from scene to scene, leaving you breathless in the excitement and irreverence that always bring the movie to new, humorous heights.  When you mix it with some trippy imagery in the scenes where the boys take hallucinatory drugs, it adds more to the delirious sense of fun that keeps you wondering where this whirlwind of an excursion is going to take them.  This movie calls to mind writer-director Edgar Wright’s “Three Flavours Cornetto” trilogy with how it has its characters revel in visual humor, verbal humor, and fast-paced action, and you can’t help but wonder how wild a collaboration would be between him and Doff.

With the abundance of thrills and surprises that “Get Duked!” has in store for you, this is a camping trip that throws away the map without a second thought.

Grade: A-

Following a Murder, the Tide Recedes on a Coastal Town’s Secrets

Morgan Saylor (left) and Sophie Lowe in 
"Blow the Man Down"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

Throughout writer-directors Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy's darkly comic thriller, “Blow the Man Down,” we have several sea shanties that are sung, bringing us into the culture of the film’s coastal setting and practically having you feel the sea spray hitting your face.  One of these lines from the titular song says, “Livin’ and sinnin’ go hand-into-hand.”

This couldn’t be a more apt summarization of the movie’s theme, a story of a town’s wrongs resurfacing as a new generation is tasked with facing them.

Mary Beth and Priscilla Connolly (Morgan Saylor and Sophie Lowe, respectively) are sisters living in the fictional fishing village of Easter Cove, Maine.  Having just lost their mother, they must now make it on their own.  After Mary Beth kills a local man (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) in self defense, she and Priscilla dispose of his body in the ocean.  This soon plunges them into a police investigation that will disclose the unsettling mysteries of their town and its inhabitants.

Saylor and Lowe give wonderful, emotional performances as sisters who learn that, in order to live in Easter Cove, you have to make difficult choices in order to survive.  There’s an understated intensity to both of them that shows how conflicted they are in trying to hold onto their moral selves, but also realizing that they must do questionable things in order to stay ahead of their new enemies.  Through their interactions, we witness the strain that it takes for them to keep together whatever is left of their lives from before the events of the movie, and the toughness of their performances keeps us invested in their journey as they try to right both the wrongs committed by themselves, as well as those by others.

The film has some colorful supporting characters, such as June Squibb, Annette O’Toole, and Marceline Hugot as a trio of women who know the poisonous ins and outs of Easter Cove; Gayle Rankin as a young woman who knows more than what she’s letting on; and Will Brittain as an officer who’s working on the case.  We’re given a detailed view into who these people are as you continue to wonder what their fates will be, and you’ll be compelled for every minute of their arcs.  

However, the standout performance of the film is Margo Martindale, who plays Enid Nora Devlin, a shady, don’t-get-in-my-way bed-and-breakfast owner who could help you if you help her, but won’t hesitate to mow you down if you try to pull a fast one on her.  It’s a role that allows for Martindale to be both malicious and humorous, showing an ability to take charge of any scene in which she appears, and she does it all without seeming like she’s trying to outshine anyone.  Her calm, snake-in-the-grass presence is enough to make her scenes memorable and recalls her impressive work as the equally intimidating crime-family matriarch Mags Bennett on FX’s television series, “Justified,” and Martindale leaves you in awe with how easy she can put you on edge.

Despite the movie being just barely an hour and a half, the screenplay by Cole and Krudy does everything that it can to invite you into this community and teach you about what goes on in the open and behind closed doors of the tranquil homes.  With the intriguing characters and layered story, we have a well-rounded view of Easter Cove, which helps to immerse us even more in the central mystery because of how familiar we become with the town and its residents.  Cole and Krudy build a superb narrative that slowly exposes the grit that lingers underneath the deceptive serenity of the community, building a disquieting case for how you don’t ever fully realize what may be happening in your home town that you seem to know so well.

Between the grainy cinematography by Todd Banhazl and the haunting musical score by Brian McOmber and Jordan Dykstra, we have a chilling atmosphere that mixes with the oppressively tight-knit, always-in-your-business appearance of the community, making you feel paranoid for the safety of Mary Beth and Priscilla as they try to cover up their crime.

The direction by Cole and Krudy has a Coen brothers vibe to it, giving this movie a sort of “Fargo” feel, due to the small-town folksiness, some eccentric supporting characters, tense and mysterious narrative, and dark humor that manages to fit effortlessly with the film’s more serious aspects.  With this only being Cole’s second feature and Krudy’s first, the way in which they’re able to pull you into these characters’ lives and provide you with a strong feeling for how this community operates isn’t anything short of impressive, and in the end, you couldn’t me more excited for whatever they do next.  

“Blow the Man Down” is a movie that brings you into a town where the cold, hard truth of the village is always threatening to bite you, and this movie is guaranteed to hook you like a fish.

Grade: A

Upon Venturing to America, an Immigrant Finds Himself in a New World…Twice

Seth Rogen in "An American Pickle"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

Comedies like “Coming to America,” “Borat,” and “The Dictator” have shown the hilarity of having a character traveling to America and experiencing culture shock.  In such a scenario, it’s fun to watch the hilarious misunderstandings that such characters can fall into as they try to adjust to life.  

This is a situation that’s delved into for cinematographer Brandon Trost’s directorial debut, “An American Pickle,” a comedy that rides on the terrific dual performance of its lead, but doesn’t quiet muster up enough jokes that are befitting to its star.

Herschel Greenbaum (Seth Rogen) and his wife, Sarah (Sarah Snook), are Jewish laborers who move from their village in Eastern Europe to Brooklyn in 1919.  After Herschel is given a job in a pickle factory, he falls into a vat of pickles as the factory closes and is brined for a century.  After waking up in 2019, he finds his great-grandson, Ben Greenbaum (also Rogen), who decides to help his ancestor fit in with the time period and find success.

This dual performance allows Rogen to steer away from the stoner-persona that tends to come up in several of his characters.  He employs an Eastern European accent with ease for Herschel, while also portraying Ben as the funny, everyday guy that Rogen does so well at portraying.  However, it’s Herschel’s character that’s the more fun of the two to watch.  It gives Rogen a chance to do something that he hasn’t done before, bringing us a character that stands out from his others and is pretty much the main reason to check out this movie.

The acting in this movie pretty much all comes down to Rogen, but one memorable supporting cast member is Snook.  Despite her screen time all being in the first 10 minutes of the movie, she and Rogen exhibit an understated, yet terrific comedic chemistry in their brief time together.

The screenplay by Simon Rich, which is based on his 2013 short story, “Sell Out,” creates a fun premise, but mostly relies on the jokes that you would expect from a movie that deals with a fish-out-of-water story such as this, with most of the jokes revolving around Hershel’s adjustment to a world that seems alien to him.  There are chuckles here and there, but when you’re dealing with someone who has written for “Saturday Night Live” and created the hilarious and surreal television comedy, “Man Seeking Woman,” you can’t be faulted for expecting more.  Despite this, some credit should be given that, with a running time of just an hour and a half, Rich knows that this premise can only go so far.

While the movie as a whole isn’t too memorable, the first 10 minutes must be pointed out as being both funny and visually appealing.  The cinematography by John Guleserian utilizes a boxy image for this sequence, as well as giving these images faded corners, making this opening sequence one that evokes the feeling of looking at photos from long ago.  Given the humor and charm of this part of the film, you start to wish at some point that the movie was instead about these two characters trying to make it in America, instead of Herschel trying to adjust to the 21st century.

Trost, whose work before this film has been as a cinematographer, such as for acclaimed films like “This is the End,” “The Disaster Artist,” and “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” doesn’t quiet get a chance to show us his extent as a filmmaker and do much that’s creative after the visually appealing opening sequence.  And, while the movie tries to include some heartfelt moments between the two main characters, the tonal shifts don’t always work and are difficult to take seriously.

Despite “An American Pickle” not providing Trost with much of an occasion to see what he can do as a filmmaker, he still shows some signs of potential in the scenes of the movie that end up working.  And, with a better script, there’s confidence to be had for Trost turning out something memorable, a movie that can be deliciously funny, instead of one where it tastes fine when you first try it, but wouldn’t quite feel like experiencing it again.

Grade: B-