You Are Alone

Do not watch this movie if you're depressed. It is VERY depressing. That being said, it is a great, low budget film with great dialogue. The actress really shines. It will stick with you.

There were moments when watching, "You Are Alone" at the New England Film + Video Festival recently, when I felt the lead characters seemed very familiar, like old college friends, who gradually become larger than life. The journey these characters undertake is at turns, poignant and hilarious, and a testament to the artistry of screenwriter/director, Gorman Bechard, who wrought such authentic characters, and the actors, Jessica Bohl (Daphne/Britney) and Richard Brundage (Buddy), who brought them to life.

Several comparisons have been made to Coppola's, "Lost in Translation." To me, the film was more reminiscent of Pen-ek Ratanaruang's, "Last Life In the Universe," in terms of its edgy, melancholic beauty, laced with the kind of smoky humor I associate with Jarmusch and the hermetic intimacy of Roehmer.

Finally, much well-deserved ado has already been made about Bechard and Bohl, about which I heartily agree. The only new comment I might add is that the unsung hero in all of this is Richard Brundage, whose nuanced portrayal of Buddy blends equal parts sweetness and menace with deft, and who provides an aching flow of innocence and Weltschmerz to counterpoint and draw out the character of Daphne/Britney.

Kudos to all involved in, "You Are Alone."

I caught this at the Chicago IndieFest and have to say YOU ARE ALONE is a lot funnier than the other reviews and even the website would lead you to think. Not HA HA Wedding Crashers' funny, but sick, twisted, I can't believe she just said that but it's so damn true funny.

Jessica Bohl, who deservedly won Best Actress, is amazing to watch. There's never a moment when you think oh, I'm watching a movie and she's an actress. She's too damn real for words.

In fact there's 2 scenes that I'm still giggling over, and I won't give them away, but in one she's in the bathroom talking about how much she gets paid for performing a certain service and how "awesome" it is. (I almost wonder how many people in the audience are secretly thinking the same thing!!!)

In another she talks about a teenagers definition of "sex" versus an adults, and if it isn't the truest dialog I've heard in a movie in a long time, I don't know what is.

Good show, really good acting, and the director takes us swimming through his storyline in an interesting, unpredictable way, especially since, essentially, it's two people in a room. It doesn't race through like many modern films, but doesn't drag, either. Bohl is flippant enough to believe her in the "now" of her character, which is still involved and not going back on her 'career' choices - so it is believable without the need for her to show us a deep, self-examination of her soul...Brundage has the delicate balance of weight, innocence, meekness, and class to pull off 'Buddy' very well. A bit grainy on the film quality, but it fits the tone of the story. Could use a little polishing on the hair and makeup end of things, but definitely worth watching.

If you're tired by the same repetitive, unintelligent material that the mainstream movie industry releases, you'll enjoy "You Are Alone". It is thought provoking, well shot and riveting.

Without revealing anything that you don't find out in the first few minutes of the movie, this is the story of a young white high school girl from an upper middle class environment who is working as an escort and is discovered by her neighbor. The vast majority of the movie occurs in a hotel room where he hired her to come.

Through their discussion, you explore two shifting views of prostitution, depression, loneliness. Yet the movie is not depressing. It talks about dark things without being depressing.

As a viewer, your emotions and preconceived notions are moved around, but gently. You come out of it with a lot to think about. I like that in a movie.