Natural Selection

Robbie Pickering had its World Premiere at SXSW where it was well-received and earned several awards. It is sort of an odd film about the struggles of damaged people. Natural Selection could be described as partially a critique of fundamentalist religion, part road trip film, and part human tragedy. It is the story of Linda who is trapped in a loveless marriage. She goes on a trip looking for one thing and discovers parts of herself that she didn't know existed. The script is well-written and the film is well-acted – especially considering this is the writer/director's first feature film. The film avoids easy answers or simple judgments to complex questions. The character development for the two main characters is nuanced and provocative. In the end, the audience may be left with more questions than answers. The film seeks intended as a critique of dogmatism, but offers the viewer little in the way of alternative answers to hang on to.

An okay indie flick bolstered by a fantastic lead performance by comedienne Rachael Harris. Harris is probably best known for playing Ed Helms' wife in The Hangover, or perhaps for her appearances on The Daily Show or VH1's I Love the '70s/80s/whatever. One could never have predicted the depth she gives to her character here. She plays a sexless, Christian housewife whose husband (John Diehl) suffers from a stroke. It comes to light that, though he refuses to sleep with her, he frequents the local sperm bank. Harris feels betrayed, but her husband is at death's door, so she attempts to forgive him. He mutters, perhaps from delirium, that she needs to find a long lost son, and she sets out to find the young man. Matt O'Leary plays the drug addict she finds, and, attempting to escape the sheriff, he takes off with her on a road trip. O'Leary is quite good himself, but, again, it's Harris' movie. The film starts off a little snarky about the whole situation, but Harris takes her character's dilemma seriously and plays her as a woman in deep emotional turmoil. The film is a dramedy, and it's often very funny. But Harris' dramatic moments are the ones you're going to remember. She's a true revelation here, turning in one of the best performances of the year.

I was more than surprised by this film. The performance of the two main characters was authentic and moving. Linda and Raymond were both desperate and lonely people yearning for human connection. The film takes us on a whirlwind trip through powerful, unexamined emotions. A few of the supporting characters were under developed, but did not seriously detract from the movie. I was moved by the power of this little film.

We absolutely love this movie! From start to finish we were mesmerized...It has a fantastic story line and not your typical ending. I highly recommend watching it

The sign of a great actor is to make their performance appear so effortless and natural there is little doubt they completely reflect the person they portray. There are a couple of great performances in this movie, but the one by Rachael Harris.. bit.ly/13oKWjl .. is just off the charts. Natural Selection would not be a movie receiving a lot of mainstream recognition, and that's a shame, for it is an absolutely wonderful little film, featuring one of the finest performances you're likely to see in awhile... hats off to Rachael !! PS.. The film so impressed critic Roger Ebert that he showed the film at Ebertfest in 2011 and granted it three and a half out of four stars.