Adventures of the Naked Umbrella

This old woman has heard every storyline and sleeps through most movies. But not this one. This one shook me wide awake. It's just the right movie for our increasingly weird times. It highlights the craziness of trying to navigate through a mad world where everyone is suffering some form of societal-induced insanity.

Every performance is a standout, and every character is so well written. I was particularly impressed by Jeremy Davies. He's always great, but he really gave this one his all. He somehow makes us identify and really feel for this pyromaniac conspiracy theorist. I'm easily drawn into seeing the world through his perspective.

Taryn Manning, who plays his wife, is the perfect counterpoint to his character. I fell in love with this couple and found myself rooting for them the whole time. His trans granny is the most loveable shotgun-wielding drug dealer you'll ever see on the screen.

Even the "bad" guy is completely sympathetic. You understand how/why he makes those bad decisions and I couldn't really fault him given his back story.

That leads me to the director/writer. I had never heard of Gerlad Brunskill before, and it looks like he's only done a little bit of directing. I sure hope he continues on this path, because I'll remain on the lookout for anything he does going forward. He wrote a great story and elicited some amazing performances. Brilliant stuff!

My husband couldn't sleep after watching it because there's so much to process and he woke up wanting to talk about it. Interestingly, it left him feeling rather sad/depressed at the end. However, I didn't feel that way at all. I was left feeling much more hopeful...and I'm the pessimist in this relationship. Go figure.

I don't think this movie is for everyone, but for those who love great performances and deep dives into human psychology, definitely put this on your watch list.

This is NOT a comedy. It's a drama. An odd drama.

There are multiple scenes and setting where the makers CLEARLY thought they were creating comedy... but there isn't any.

For the most part it's a pure drama focused ENTIRELY on "Sam Wanoutsky" (the "Naked Umbrella" according to his conspiracy theory pod cast). He's on screen a good 90% of the time. Frankly I didn't think the character was very interesting nor compelling. And with htat, the entire film felt unsatisfying and a waste of time. Many of these scenes are purely to try and show quirks that Sam Wanoutsky - but they weren't so much quirks as just stupid illogical actions. Much of it makes no sense.

Ultimately this film's plot COULD be written in two sentences, but I will avoid spoilers.

It's a waste of time with no real payoff.

For the record the perhaps the SMALLEST speaking part in this film is Tom Arnold's part. He is NOT a major character in this. He's a "known cameo" if anything.

----- PASS -------

One of the most beautiful and real love stories I have ever seen in a movie, wrapped in the most delightfully bizarre package.

Sam is a pryromaniac. A convicted arsonist. A conspiracy podcaster.

What caught me off guard is how genuine and kind his character is. How everything he does is driven by a will to do the best he can. To be brave in hard circumstances. He always tries to do right by Renee and Kevin, and the parole officer who's has become his only real friend.

I'm not going to speak to the plot directly. I had the benefit of seeing this movie knowing nothing about it, and I wish that for you too.

I mean look at the fricking scores people! Here I am, my neurodivergent ass, crying and screaming with laughter at this film! I'm only half way through and I'm like "wtaf is wrong with people? This is a MASTERPIECE! And such beauty!"

Come on viewers - this is magnificent. Who cares about the whole conspiracy angle - maybe the conspiracies are real (hello : some conspiracies ARE very real - like CAPITALISM, baby! Best there is a BigMoneyTM knows what it's doing!) or maybe they're not - but at the heart of this story is LOVE - and omg the chemistry between these actors is so incredible that I believed they were in love. And I love them too.

What a superb film. Everything about this was queer and divergent and gorgeous and right. Thank you. I'll give it a 9/10 just because I want to invite you to come back with a sequel to make me a naked umbrella 10/10 film (shhhh it is already that).

Ps I am not sure if this has any spoilers - is there anything one can say about a film that isn't a spoiler - for someone?

Pps love you - mr or mrs or Missy reader - remember the world loves you back.

Ppps for anyone that suspects I'm on drugs - actually I'm just one big grown up kid who knows that the manual we've all been given on How to be Human - is wrong. *This* (points to self) is how you do human. Thanks. And good night. Kiss and heart emojis.

I think this movie was really interesting and brings something unique. It wasn't really a comedy, it was more an absurdist thriller. I was clenched on the edge of my seat for the whole third act. This movie combined fantastical and realistic elements in a really interesting way which causes you to think more about the way people in this world act. The first act is pretty slow, but it really ramps up as you get closer to the end. The main characters were interesting and it was easy to see everyone's motivations for their actions. The movie is pretty intense and contains some dark themes, so be warned. Also I would say this is def at least PG13. Interesting comment on the world we live in, while also bringing some true absurdity to it.