The Puffy Chair

It actually refreshing the amount of people who have totally missed the point of this film...perhaps they have found something most of us yearn for...that amazingly simple feeling of total and mutual infatuation.

For those of us more vulnerable, the main theme of this story will be an all too familiar one. Doubts of commitment, and about committing. That which should be simple, is suddenly a struggle for affirmation. As a guy, I totally related to poor Josh (and his cowardice). I see myself in the reasons he resorts to baby talk and humor (it avoids sincerity), the frustration he represses, and that feeling like you are the only sane person left. As for the women out there...watch this movie and then ponder this: If he is crazy about you and if hes worth being crazy about, then he will make you know it. End of story.

If you don't know it, hes either not crazy about you and doesn't have the balls to admit it, or you want someone who can show it more...move on.

Id like to believe true love is simple, and amazing, like the telling of the story of The Puffy Chair.

The Puffy Chair is a pleasure to watch; human and funny and full of well- observed moments that ring so true they elicit long, gorgeous belly laughs.

Josh, his girlfriend Emily and his brother Rhett are on a road trip to visit Josh's father. On the way they plan to pick up a puffy chair for Dad's birthday.

The film, although buzzed as a road trip movie, is essentially a relationship comedy-drama, and unfortunately falls into gender stereotypes. Emily, focused (entirely?) on marriage issues, is less sympathetic than the two guys, Josh and Rhett. It is disappointing in such a character driven movie that the female still...isn't given enough character. However, Katie Aselton as Emily does a terrific job, as do Mark Duplass and Rhett Wilkins, and the film's appeal, as in BottleRocket, is motored by the immense charm of its lead actors. Warmer and less measured than Napoleon Dynamite or Garden State, The Puffy Chair is a lovely and--one more time--truly charming film. I highly recommend it.

For a single man, the late 20's can be a very interesting and pleasant phase of life. You still enjoy much of the freedom you had when you were younger, but without the poverty. You've got a real job, a decent car, and a place of your own with no roommate. You've probably even got a few wine glasses and some framed pictures on the wall. You've figured out how to look and act like an adult, while remaining a teenager on the inside. In "The Puffy Chair," Josh (Mark Duplass) is just such a guy (not a man, but a guy). He sets off on a road trip to deliver his dad's birthday present, a purple Lazy-Boy just like one Josh remembers from his childhood. It's clear he is looking forward to some solo time on the road, but first his girlfriend Emily (Kathryn Aselton) and then his brother Rhett (Rhett Wilkins) tag along. In true road-trip fashion the three encounter various challenges along the way, and hash out their relationships.

The dynamics between the emotionally reticent Josh and his effusive, impulsive brother are there mainly for comic relief. The main theme of "The Puffy Chair" is the tension between Josh, who is happy just being a guy and having a girlfriend, and Emily who craves at least some emotional validation if not a solid commitment. The painful, late-night "conversations" that result will be uncomfortably familiar to most. Don't be misled, though. "The Puffy Chair" deals with real feelings and relationship issues, but it is above all else a hilarious road-trip comedy.

The first full-length feature by the Duplass brothers (Mark and Jay), "The Puffy Chair" is unmistakably low-budget. I suspect the biggest budget item was the actual chair. The quality of the cinematography and lighting lies somewhere between cheap porn and after-school special. The performances, on the other hand, are very heartfelt and enjoyable. One nice independent-film touch is that Josh's parents are played by Mark Duplass's actual parents. In one pivotal scene, Mr. Duplass dispenses some of his own fatherly advice.

I caught Puffy Chair at Sundance, and I will be surprised if it hits the Cineplex any time soon. It's a delightful movie, but it doesn't have the breakout success potential of a "Napoleon Dynamite." This is more the "Brothers McMullen" of 2005. See it if you can, and keep an eye out for the next Duplass brothers effort. 4 out of 5 stars.

By all accounts, most reviewers liked this film. I did not find the male characters likable. I did not find the story likable. I did not find the production likable. I did find this film a total waste of time.

I've read quite a few reviews of this film (as well as other "mumblecore" flicks) that are far too generous with the Cassavetes comparisons. Cassavetes dealt with deeply profound subject matter. His characters were struggling with issues of morality, death and sometimes sanity. This was a nice, cute movie, nothing more. The stakes are small-scale, the problems and concerns of he characters are personal to the point of being solipsistic and there's really nothing driving the action other than a pretty hackneyed sense of "loss of childhood." If anything, valid comparisons could be made for the films of John Hughes. His "brat pack" body of work seems to be a point of reference for many of these filmmakers, at least on an emotional level.