Visioneers

I was at the Seattle premiere and I have to say that this film exceeded my wildest expectations, I've been a fan of Zach's for a while but I never expected this. I was skeptical of what seemed, from previews, like a plot that reached too far and relied on shock value but I was wrong, the film is beautiful and the absurdity comes from a real and painful place. Zach's performance is beautifully understated and he accomplishes so much with very few lines and the rest of the cast was really well constructed on what seems like a shoestring budget. Having grown up in Seattle it was really great to see cast members from Almost Live, it was just a really great experience over all (except the audio in the theater sucked) and I highly recommend it.

Trailers are strange beasts that often hugely misrepresent the tone of a film. I'm not sure if I enjoy the mischievous manipulation involved, or hate the mistrust that it generates. A little of both, I guess.

Visioneers is one such example: the trailer comes across as a fairly light-hearted, quirky romantic comedy.

In reality, however, this film deserves to sit beside 1984 and Blade Runner as dark and disturbing visions of dystopian futures. While it starts out with the uncomfortable humor you'd expect from a Zach Galifianakis film, the atmosphere of oppression builds over the course of the movie to become almost unbearable. This film makes Requiem for a Dream seem like an episode of 'friends'. The central character, George, lives robotically both in his dull office job and at home in a loveless marriage. The world around him is full of deadpan absurdities, a parody of drab offices and mid life crises, with an undercurrent of hopelessness that rings a little too true to sit comfortably.

The way the theme of dreams is turned into a literal threat is done with obvious self-awareness, but it comes across like a bad cinematic pun. Its more carefully constructed distortions of reality are where it really shines, with its vapid self-help infomercials, eccentric mentor figures, and the mega-corporation as a cult. And the way George seems to communicate through much of the movie semi-telepathically instead of verbally may be strange and unsettling, but also mesmerizing. Thoroughly worth watching.

There are comedies, there are dark comedies, and then there are comedies that are so dark that you're not sure if you're even supposed to laugh. I'm not using the word "dark " to mean "morbid" or "frightening" but instead I'm using it to mean sarcastic, very satirical, and without the usual jokes, levity & gags that usually accompany comedies. "Brazil", "Dr. Strangelove", "The Trial" and "Catch-22" are perhaps the greatest films of this category, and if you've seen any of them you probably know what an odd experience they are. You also probably know how hard it is to find films like them.

"The Visioneers" fits squarely in that darker-than-dark category. While this movie is categorized a dark comedy, there are no jokes, zingers & knee-slapping punchlines like the word "comedy" might imply. Instead the humor comes from the sheer bizarreness of the situation, in the satirical presentation (very tongue-in-cheek), and in the odd, mostly emotionless reactions the characters have to preposterous situations. In that respect, it is indeed similar to the classic "Brazil" which is mentioned on the DVD cover. It also has a cold, brooding vibe similar to a Charlie Kaufman flick ("Being John Malkovich", "Synecdoche NY") or the great offbeat comedies "Punch Drunk Love" and "Joe Vs the Volcano" and maybe even a hit of Truffaut's 1966 "Fahrenheit 451" (especially concerning the mind-numbed wife constantly watching TV).

Insanely funny minor characters, like Missi Pyle (one of Hollywood's funniest second-fiddles) playing the neurotically unbalanced talk show host who becomes obsessed with butter, or Ryan McCann playing "Mac Luster" the Zoolander-Meets-Rambo action hero, or Matthew Glave as the Nazi health trainer, keep the comedy rolling even though there isn't a big focus on zingers and not really much action at all. A love story develops in the second half which is surprisingly sentimental and touching despite the outlandish circumstances surrounding the characters.

The plot itself is a straightforward dystopian nightmare: in a not-so-distant future (though very reminiscent of the cheezy 1980s with laughably bad propaganda commercials), a mid-level manager played by Zach Galifianakis begins to "suffer" from the phenomenon of dreaming. At the same time, a weird epidemic is hitting society whereby people spontaneously explode. And the tyrannical corporation he works for seems to have an unhealthy interest in what's going on.

If you immediately sense echoes of "Brazil" (the story of a corporate nobody who begins to develop a conscience) and perhaps similarities to "Joe Vs the Volcano" (same type of story), you're on the right track. "Visioneers" is a little more low key than those two, meaning there's not as much action, drama or overt comedy. But it has unique personality of its own, somewhere between the aforementioned classics and a small town satire like "Edward Scissorhands". This movie forsakes the customary surreal city setting in lieu of a more intimate suburban middle-America setting. Indeed a notable difference between this flick and the others I've mentioned is its lack of grandeur. It doesn't try to impress us with enormous sets and infinite labyrinths of skyscrapers, office desks and bureaucracies.

Budget constraints are probably to blame for the lack of grand visuals, and usually I don't hold it against a film for having a low budget. But still I have to dock the film a star or two because I feel like the grand approach is the way to go when dealing with a subject like this. Going all the way back to Orson Welles' masterpiece "The Trial" or even wayyy back to the beginning with Fritz Lang's "Metropolis", powerful visuals stun audience into feeling the weight of the crushing enemy: organized society itself. But other than that minor, subjective preference of mine, I thought this movie was fantastic.

The ending, if I read it correctly, is much more than meets the eye. Be sure to consider it carefully before interpreting it.

If you like any or all of these films I've mentioned, don't hesitate to rent or even buy "Visioneers" (by the way, if you live near a Dollar Tree store, you can find this great title brand new for exactly $1 which will leave you plenty extra to buy some popcorn (skip the butter... that's a reference to a bizarre woman's butter obsession in the movie).

When you consider it's been years, if not decades, since there's been a good absurd satire like this which is unafraid to dive boldly into the bizarre, this flick has all the makings of a modern classic. So count search your couches for change and run down to the Dollar Tree to grab this one. Or even if you just Netflix it, it'll be time well spent.

A Jeffers salute to all of you! Visioneers opens with a stale, lifeless office environment on the 3rd level of the Jeffers corporation, which is the "friendliest and most profitable corporation" ever. The story follow George Washington Winsterhammerman (Zach G.) as he floats through his day-to-day life without any real passion, all the while trying to avoid "exploding," which the world around him continually claims to be able to prevent by following various self-help books, buying the latest gadget or toy, and staying productive; basically, not truly living in any real sense. None of this stuff truly works for George; he has dreams, but he is afraid to follow them, because he is lead to believe that if he does he will definitely explode.

The almost-too-subtle tone and style of the film can be hard to interpret at times, especially if you're trying too hard to understand it, but I believe it suits the film well and allows for a truly contemplative cinematic experience. I don't believe the film carries any one particular agenda, although it takes several shots at America and capitalism in general, there are also a couple of scenes that show the "hippie" response to that way of life and how it is also flawed in many ways. There are so many underlying themes and messages about life at the heart of this film that it is impossible to list them all here, and I don't know if I even could, because I probably missed a few of them the first couple of times I watched it. Turn the negative, cynical and egotistical part of your brain off before you sit down to watch Visioneers and you will truly appreciate the message of the film. Yes, it has a few flaws here and there, and may also seem preachy and pretentious at times, but that could very well have been intentional; meant to convey the message of the film in a different way.

It wrestles with what it truly means to be alive! I won't spoil the conclusion for anyone, because if you truly grasp it while watching it, there is so much more to be had from it. Go ahead and make some popcorn, grab a soda and your loved one (or a buddy) and really dive into this film. It may just change your life.

I mean, I get it. This movie is just not enjoyable in any way. There's a message in there about the awful dullness of the American white-collar lifestyle, marked by affluence stripped of all meaning or pleasure. It's all expressed with a bit of weirdness trying for absurdity. Unfortunately the movie ends without any real redemptive moment or even purpose. I did though like the bits on superficial tension-relieving strategies, since we seem to be awash in them these days, with predictable results.