Fallen Stars

Most people live in quiet despair wondering just where their lives are going and are they ready for the next challenge.

Here in Fallen Stars we are given a look into the life of two people that have reached that point in life in which a change must take place. But both fear making that change and living their current daily life is just too comfortable to step out of. The loneliness is less of a discomfort than making the move to change their lives.

Cooper (Ryan O'Nan) has been bartender in the same bar for 10 years, Daisy (Michelle Ang) has written a best seller book and is obviously lost for ideas for another book. These two meet and intuitively see the emptiness in each others existence. But opening their heart to another is not an easy thing for them to share.

This wonderful film is quiet and repetitive and withdrawn into itself - just as the two characters are in their life. Writer/directed Brian Jett has created a story that is more reflective of the general public than the general public is willing to admit.

If you didn't like Lost In Translation then I'd probably give this a wide berth,

But if you did then this is real joy.

A slow, subtle, but always engaging gem of a film. The two leads were equally outstanding.

Loved it. You probably will too... so long as you were blown away by Lost in Translation.

Fallen Stars is a smaller film with actors unknown to me. Ryan O'Nan and Michelle Ang take a bow. Also, director Brian Jett.

Fallen Stars should make them all rising stars.

Away from the humdrum and fan fare of big budget cinema lie these Fallen Stars. There is something very authentic about this movie, despite a familiar story-line.

I on my part love movies that deal with real issues concerning ordinary individuals. The director does extremely well in doing so here.

There are no twists and turns. No unwanted cameos of melodrama. The actors play to the script , which is well written.

The movie also bears witness to the adage that a little awareness can transform very basic acting performances into effective ones.

The movie moves at a leisurely pace, in line with the general theme of the plot . The characterisation is good and the setting soothingly plain.

If you watch it without any expectations ( which is the way life too should be lived) you will stumble upon a fine movie .

It's like a 'Red Hot Chili Peppers' song come true. The characters are relatable, and it moves at a delightful pace. You find yourself rooting for the characters, and not necessarily for a Hollywood ending. The isolation and loneliness of ALL the characters is captured so beautifully that when Daisy and Cooper finally start their awkward relationship you feel a sense of relief. I was also angry when Cooper risked their unconventional and fragile relationship with his selfishness. I think what makes this film extra beautiful is the display of courage and open-mindedness' the main characters must display to overcome their loneliness. In a pre-COVID world with sowed division and overtly negative social media, this movie reinforces the need for connections beyond the typical constructs.

I didn't expect to see this little gem with almost two characters who weaved just two single threads into a very colorful tapestry. Two opposite souls entrapped in their own suffocating world. One, a graduate from Yale, already a somewhat known literary figure, but mysteriously suffered unknown depression and a bit anti-social; the other one, a failed guy not even finished the college without a diploma, stayed on a deadbeat going nowhere bar tendering job over 10 years without even counting; an aimless, mindless and numb good guy, also suffered depression subconsciously like a walking stiff not even realized it. These two lonely characters facing their own lives day in and day out until they met in the bar where the deadbeat bar tender working at night.

A very subtle screenplay expertly portrayed the lives of the young generation who lost by their own choices as adults, a hollow, uninspired, boring formula to go on with their lives, trapped inside yet never thought trying a bit harder to get out of it.

Great casting jobs for both of the leading roles, nice and simple dialog that so smoothly attached with and to the characters. A very one-directional scenario and evenly developed storyline but never became boring at all, with the help of great cinematography, subtle soundtrack, unpretentious trendy young generation dialog. A great treat to your own loneliness you are facing daily.

Highly recommended.