i just watched this film at third street films inaugural festival in baton rouge. it was screened very last and not shown in competition with the other dozen or so short travesties (all local Louisiana made). i kind of wanted this film to fail. i know the director by reputation and am currently enrolled in the university where he teaches a much buzzed about screen writing course. i suppose my envy of his success in life as well as the fact that a screen writing workshop where your amateur scripts are read and critiqued by other amateurs is about as useful as, well any other workshop. but when the curator of the festival informed the audience of fellow movie buffs, hipsters and elderly "art" enthusiasts that the film was an "official selection at sundance" i stopped thinking this might be some sort of ninety-minute train wreck and i paid attention. before the film started the director got up on stage with his dslr and filmed one of his actors freaking out on stage. I'm not entirely sure what the point was except to confuse the audience and cause silence.
the film itself, seemingly shot on the same dslr that godshall had shot the pre-screening manic episode on wasn't bad. it was surprisingly well-acted and fairly well-edited. most of the acting credit has to go to Eric Schexnayder who played a rather hilarious "obnoxious boyfriend" to one of the title character's step children. that title character, Byron played very realistically and without fanfare by newcomer Paul batiste, lives in a house with his ex-wife and her children and new boyfriend. but his nights are spent with his two contrasting lady friends, one a thin and attractive white female and the other a more rotund black woman. i found the soul-searching and world-weariness of the title character to be a refreshing change from the other films of the night, most of which dealt with romantic loss (yawn). also, the film reminded me quite a bit of harmony korines julien donkey-boy. not for its content so much as its method. although the character of Claudius played by justin bickman was reminiscent of the early violent julien. i hate to say the film drags at the end but it could've probably used a bit of trimming during the final sequence. also, some things go painfully unexplained, for instance what was the meaning of the man whirling the noise maker in the woods?? where is the resolution to the survivalist nuts story? perhaps the films most impressive feat is that the film was made in Louisiana by people from Louisiana (presumably) and yet it wasn't saturated with southern cultural imagery. true, religion plays an awfully large role but that is hardly a southern specific institution. all-in-all its a decent film worthy of the time it takes and concentration it requires. i look forward to seeing what godshall does next and i hope that next years third street festival will be more diverse and filled with better films.
