MUMBLESPUNK STREAMER | The Pleasure of Being Robbed

Currently available via Lovefilm

This is one of those movies that you watch and instantly have to check the internet to see if other people hated it as much as you did. Within minutes I realised that I was not alone in thinking that this is an utter waste of your time with no redeeming elements and, when it comes in at under seventy minutes, that is some achievement.

Whether it be the kleptomaniac protagonist who is an opportunist in her stealing and so ends up with very little of interest, the way that she and her friends are painted in such individualistic fashion with her ‘playing table tennis when she is shit at table tennis’ and her friend ‘having his duvet suspended above his bed by a pulley for no reason at all’, the narrative that relies on the random theft moving it forward, which unsurprisingly, doesn’t work, or the dialogue being uninteresting, stunted pointlessness, this film seems to be the work of someone with absolutely fuck all to say. In fact, I’d argue that someone who relentlessly films a family holiday to Orlando could cut their footage into something more enjoyable to a wide audience.

When you then add in the irrelevant, dreamlike ending, the learning to drive in a matter of seconds, and cops who, amongst other irresponsible shit, leave their car doors open in the street when investigating something, this becomes a film that illuminates one of the major issues with the mumblecore movement. If anyone can get hold of a camera and make a film then ambitionless, talentless, worthless crap like this can get made and that is a real shame. Do not watch unless you have seen every other film out there.

My Verdict: Streamehhhhhhhhhhh

DAN

TVMUMBLESpunk | Girls

Coming to Sky Atlantic in September

Spoilers included

Approaching the mid-point of the season, this episode amps up the drama as all four of our females have shit hit their respective fans. Of course, in keeping with Girls, the drama is not overly sensational instead revelling in a slightly unlikely but utterly plausible fashion. It was necessary for this to occur as, while the last episode was still entertaining, there was a lack of progression in the narrative.

Hannah gets a new job, gets massaged/touched up by her much older boss, dumps Adam over a cock-text that he sent her by mistake and then, when he seems responsive to her issues, ends up back in his arms. Jessa loses the two children she is babysitting in the park, while Shoshanna almost manages to lose her virginity until she frightens the guy off with her virginity. The biggest poop though is when Charlie and Ray are alone in the flat, find Hannah’s diary, then perform a show in front of the four girls where Charlie sings a song called ‘Hannah’s Diary’ quoting extracts about how unhappy Marnie is with him.

Aside from all of this drama, I found more interest in the episode elsewhere.

Firstly we get a bunch of side characters that we are unlikely to encounter too often that not only combat the lack of racial diversity that some people had with the show, but also add some freshness. Sometimes it works as in the case of the two colleagues that Hannah befriends who, while cartoony, add a few laughs and a different kind of voice to the pretty similar one that the leads share, but then the nannies that Jessa meets with in the park culminates in a hideously unrealistic scene where she tries to create a nannies union. Regardless, it is nice to see some new faces that you’re not expected to remember.

Secondly, we get to see more from male characters including the first occasion in the series where we get two guys interacting without a female present (correct me if I’m wrong in the comments). Ray and Charlie act exactly as blokes would do when alone in a girl’s apartment and their humour is definitely tailored to suit their gender. The same can be said of the advice given at the beginning of the episode, where you get to see the far simpler suggestion from Charlie and this again proves that the show is definitely capable of writing for guys. Hannah’s boss meanwhile adds a very interesting and real dilemma to the show where his version of sexual harassment seems innocent but isn’t quite. Finally the throwaway moment as Jessa walks away from Jeff, the father that she babysits for, and his brother and they remark on her looks. Sure it’s somewhat sexist but it is realistic and works well alongside the moment earlier in the show when Charlie remarks on Adam’s cock from the photo.

This might be my favourite episode so far, not because of the drama, comedy or anything at all like that, but more because it feels more rounded. This is the first episode that seems to be adapting to the idea of longevity and what is required to keep people entertained over the distance, and it certainly worked on me.

DAN

TVMUMBLESpunk | Girls

Coming to Sky Atlantic in September

It is here, as the credits started to roll on the third episode, that I realised Girls is exactly the show that I had hoped that it would be. The attitude, the honesty, the sexuality and the everyday are represented so perfectly here that it made me ask my girlfriend as to whether she agreed with my conclusion. The idea that this show feels unique just because it seems to not paint an idea of femininity but instead just shows us normal girls being normal is somewhat depressing, but I couldn’t be happier that it exists. I feel like my appreciation for the show comes from a line in the second episode where Jessa says, in response to a self-help book for women, ‘I don’t like women telling other women what to do or how to do it or when to do it.’

In this episode Hannah first learns that she has an STD and then, when trying to inform him of this, finds out that her ex-boyfriend is now gay. It is strange as we do not find out very much about Hannah in this episode that we didn’t already know. Instead this feels more like Marnie’s episode as she is first seen complaining about Charlie shaving his head despite stating in the last episode that she wanted him to just be a man and do whatever he wants without worrying about her response and then later finds herself pleasuring herself in the bathroom of a gallery after a potential sexual moment with an artist. Elsewhere, Jessa takes a job being a nanny and seems to strike up a relationship with the dad. 

As an episode it culminates with a wonderfully charming moment with Hannah pondering and redrafting a tweet to best sum up her journey over the episode and then dancing alone in her room before being joined by Marnie. This just seems such a natural way to react to the way their days have gone and once again my girlfriend sat and chuckled recognising herself in that moment. I really appreciate that. 

DAN

MUMBLESPUNK STREAMER | Puffy Chair

Currently available via Netflix US

This was the feature debut of the Duplass brothers in every possible way. It was the first time that they had both written and produced a movie as well as the first time Jay had directed and Mark had acted in one. In this way it reminds me ever so slightly of Bottle Rocket, a film that launched the careers of Owen Wilson as an actor, Wes Anderson as a director and them both as writers. The films are comparable in other ways too, they both feel as though they are featuring lovable and yet slightly effected characters that the film-makers are not afraid to show everyone their flaws because they paint them with such affection. They both also have this energy, this excitement that even in the slower scenes somehow simmers below the surface. Basically, it is obvious that each set of film-makers have a desire and message that they want to convey in film and that pulsates through their respective movies.

That’s where the comparison ends. The Puffy Chair, in true mumblecore fashion, is weak on plot. Josh (Duplass) travels across the country with his tightly-wound girlfriend (Aselton) and his hippy brother (Wilkins) to pick up and deliver a chair that he bought from eBay to his dad for his birthday. The majority of the ‘action’ takes place in the town where they are meant to collect the chair from but this largely revolves around killing time and an unlikely romance. Where this movie differs from regular mumblecore is in the technical aspect. This feels like a properly plotted movie, with a higher level of either equipment or competence in the cinematography and direction, and far better acting. Duplass feels comfortable on screen and the film seems anchored by his performance, while Wilkins for me steals the show with his soft comic touch.

This reads like a glowing review and perhaps it doesn’t quite deserve the level of praise that I’m bestowing upon it, but this was my second viewing of this movie in the last three months and, unexpected to me, it actually managed to improve second time round. If you like Mark Duplass as an actor then I definitely think that this is worth your time.

Verdict: Streamer

DAN

MUMBLESPUNK STREAMER | Uncle Kent

Currently available via Netflix and Netflix US

A weekend in the life of Kent Osborne, a Spongebob Squarepants illustrator, as he attempts to bed a friend, Kate (Prediger), that he made online who is staying with him. That’s the plot and, at 72 minutes, this at times feels more like an episode of a faked reality TV programme than it does a feature. But, as with the majority of mumblecore movies, what this film lacks in plot it attempts to make up for by representing real people in real situations. Of course, some might say that itself is indicative of reality TV too, albeit a reality framed by the director.

This film hinges quite strongly on Kent and fortuitously he is not a guy that you struggle to relate to. Having reached his forties whilst still living alone with his cat, this is an interesting insight to a man who seems desperate to both get close to someone and maintain an image of nonchalance towards love to his friends. It is the precarious relationship between Kent and Kate, who states that she is in a relationship yet issues an abundance of mixed signals and some not so mixed signals, that kept me intrigued and, by splitting it into days, it elicited a similar guttural reaction to Paranormal Activity every time the sun came up.

This is another movie that will not change the views of those who dislike mumblecore, but one that is definitely worth a watch for those that either do or haven’t given the genre a chance yet.

Verdict: Streamer

DAN