Diggers

Speaking as someone who actually was a full time digger on Great South Bay in Patchogue during the era of this movie, I can say to those who weren't, you will not get very much of a handle on what life was really like for us, not that I didn't recognize a lot of the characters in this film. I do applaud the filmmakers for their effort on trying to recreate as much of the clammers water world as they could with the budget they had to work with. The few period clam boats they could find were fairly accurate even if many were way underpowered with what looks like 15 horsepower period engines.

I of course enjoyed the few Long Island locations they used like the Silly Lilly and abandoned Cerullo's fishing stations. That said as a movie it was just OK. Not awful, (you want an awful 70's movie made in the 70's? watch "Two Lane Blacktop " sometime, but it was certainly not great either. The sad commentary I think is that like the industry that once supplied 70% of the worlds shellfish and is long gone, the days of trying to make a movie for a million and half dollars today are long gone too. It seems to me the cast and crew gave it an honest shot though.

The reviews were pretty good for this one, and a former girlfriend of mine is in love with Paul Rudd, so that was the main reason I ended up seeing it. It was good...actually writer Ken Marino steals just about every scene that he's in. Lauren Ambrose does a good job, and I always have liked Maura Tierney.

Nothing special though. If you are interested in seeing it, then do so. If you're not, I wouldn't be going out of my way for this one.

The funniest part (unintentionally, I'm sure) of this movie is in the DVD Special Features, where a film reviewer in Dallas, who is affiliated with HDNet (the film's backer) says something like, "I know my company is affiliated with this movie, but this is honestly the best movie I've seen in the past year or year and a half." Please! It's nowhere near that good! Way to be objective!

Well, this an interesting movie. I liked it. I liked the characters, and the story was okay. Not a fast moving film, but that's okay. It goes along at it's own pace.

The characters are believable for the most part. It's hard to believe this film is set just an hour away from Manhatten.

So, here's my beef with this film. Certain things have become too commonplace in current films. Do we really need the vulgar language all the time? Is that a modern thing? Second, for some reason, there always had to be a sex scene. Do we really need that all the time? And thirdly, there always seems to be a seen of someone going to the bathroom , which in this film happens more than once. Come on film makers, some things really need to be implied and left to the imagination. I don't want to watch a movie and see a guy sitting on the toilet.

In 1976, America's bicentennial, four friends - amateur photographer Paul Rudd (as Hunt), married man Ken Marino (as Frankie Lozo), promiscuous Ron Eldard (as Jack), and druggie Josh Hamilton (as Cons) - fret about losing their livelihood as Long Island, NY clam "Diggers" as the economy changes to favor corporate claming. The women in their lives include Mr. Rudd's sister Maura Tierney (as Gina), his city flame Lauren Ambrose (as Zoey), and Mr. Marino's perpetually pregnant wife Sarah Paulson (as Julie).

It is interesting that Islip born co-star Marino also wrote the story, because the drama really comes to life during the scene when Ms. Paulson tells him she is expecting yet another child. The couple's situation is real, well-played, and timeless. Marino subsequent frustration after suiting up to fill out a job application leads to probably the film's best moment. Otherwise, to quote Hamlet, "there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so," in director Katherine Dieckmann's setting and character driven drama.

***** Diggers (9/9/06) Katherine Dieckmann ~ Paul Rudd, Ken Marino, Maura Tierney, Lauren Ambrose

I saw this movie at SXSW in Austin right after attending a panel about the making of the movie. The film was originally to be directed by funny man David Wain of Stella fame, but he pulled out to direct "the Ten" which is an amazing film. I expected the film to be funny. Ken Marion, who wrote it, is a hilarious comedian. Paul Rudd, the lead actor, has been in comedies almost exclusively since Wet Hot American Summer and David Wain, who produced the film, is hilarious. The movie, however, was very serious. It had some amazingly hilarious moments, but overall it was a moving, serious film. I was most amazed at the fact that they pulled it off with style. A bunch of comedians made a moving, well structured, meaningful, fulfilling drama. Everyone should see it.