FILM REVIEW - 'The Money Tree' By Henry SheehanIn spite of all temptations, a young California lad sticks to his principles and his marijuana crop in "The Money Tree,'' an independent feature from Marin County. Ernestness and an amiable sense of humor are the film's main qualities, which should sit well with the countercultural sympathizers who will make up the picture's audience.
Otherwise, the action and improvised dialogue are too unfocused to appeal to more indifferently disposed viewers.
Producer Christopher Dienstag plays David, an unaffected youth who spends part of each day slogging through the forest to his camouflaged mountaintop marijuana field. He hopes to sell his crop to a Mill Valley art dealer, Vincent (Malcolm Cohen), for a handsome payoff, but in the meantime has to contend with efforts to steer him into a more lucrative trade, from the likes of his respectability-craving fiancee Erica (Monica T. Caldwell) or, at the other end of the social spectrum, a sniffling, paranoid coke dealer, Pasquel (Carlos Deloche).
Such is the film's strict morality, that both possibilties are rejected with equal force.
At its best, the film offers frequently funny observations on the difficulties David has trying to be honest outside the law. Unexpected difficulties, like an ambush from a wild pig, also make for amusing vignettes.
However, while the improvised dialogue sometimes lends a note of shaggy naturalism, once in a while, as in an otherwise persuasive scene between David and a similarly romantically rejected young woman (Katherine Schutzman), one wishes the director had yelled "cut'' a little earlier.
Perhaps since the director is the producer-star's father, Alan Dienstag, he was reluctant to interrupt. Also, some of the relationships were clearly conceived simply for the sake of making points; there is no other explanation for how a thoughtful dropout like David and a materialist like Erica could ever get together in the first place.
Some of the interior scenes are a bit boxy and constricted, but the location shots in both town and country provide a documentary texture to the depicted lifestyle.
THE MONEY TREE
A Black Sheep Film
Producer Christopher Dienstag
Director Alan Dienstag
Story Christopher Dienstag, Alan Dienstag
Dialogue Improvised by cast
Director of photography Donatello Bonato
Editor Susan Crutcher
Music Lorin Rowan
Color
Cast:
David Christopher Dienstag
Erica Monica T. Caldwell
Vincent Malcolm Cohen
Running time -- 92 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
Producer Christopher Dienstag plays David, an unaffected youth who spends part of each day slogging through the forest to his camouflaged mountaintop marijuana field. He hopes to sell his crop to a Mill Valley art dealer, Vincent (Malcolm Cohen), for a handsome payoff, but in the meantime has to contend with efforts to steer him into a more lucrative trade, from the likes of his respectability-craving fiancee Erica (Monica T. Caldwell) or, at the other end of the social spectrum, a sniffling, paranoid coke dealer, Pasquel (Carlos Deloche).
Such is the film's strict morality, that both possibilties are rejected with equal force.
At its best, the film offers frequently funny observations on the difficulties David has trying to be honest outside the law. Unexpected difficulties, like an ambush from a wild pig, also make for amusing vignettes.
However, while the improvised dialogue sometimes lends a note of shaggy naturalism, once in a while, as in an otherwise persuasive scene between David and a similarly romantically rejected young woman (Katherine Schutzman), one wishes the director had yelled "cut'' a little earlier.
Perhaps since the director is the producer-star's father, Alan Dienstag, he was reluctant to interrupt. Also, some of the relationships were clearly conceived simply for the sake of making points; there is no other explanation for how a thoughtful dropout like David and a materialist like Erica could ever get together in the first place.
Some of the interior scenes are a bit boxy and constricted, but the location shots in both town and country provide a documentary texture to the depicted lifestyle.
THE MONEY TREE
A Black Sheep Film
Producer Christopher Dienstag
Director Alan Dienstag
Story Christopher Dienstag, Alan Dienstag
Dialogue Improvised by cast
Director of photography Donatello Bonato
Editor Susan Crutcher
Music Lorin Rowan
Color
Cast:
David Christopher Dienstag
Erica Monica T. Caldwell
Vincent Malcolm Cohen
Running time -- 92 minutes
No MPAA rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
- 4/1/1992
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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