Sword of Trust

A very quirky film that takes place in today's American Deep South. So naturally, it's about the American Civil War (The War of the Northern Aggression). There's an old, inherited Union (The Army of the Northern Aggression) sword that supposedly proves that the south won the war. The sword now belongs to a lesbian couple who team up with a Birmingham pawnbroker and his dim sidekick to sell the sword to a collector for big bucks. That's when the characters plucked from Deliverance start to appear. This movie is never predictable. At least it has that going for it.

If you ever listen to Marc Maron's podcast, WTF, this is a movie you won't want to miss. Also for fans of the Netflix series Glow, you're already familiar with Marc's accessible, honest work on the little screen. Don't believe any of the negative reviews for this film. Marc's performance is a tour-de-force, just check out the New York Times review of this original masterpiece. It's a quirky comedy, perfect for summer. Expertly directed with a wonderful tone, the film is worth watching twice, at least. Come on people, do we all just need to keep seeing pre-awareness content out of the Marvel universe which is sucking the life force and brain cells from us all? Rally around original movies that feature real talent and genuine craftsmanship. Also Marc plays all the guitar on the soundtrack and it's nice to hear.

A small town Alabama pawn shop dealer (Maron) is presented with an intriguing item one day by an incredulous couple (Bell and Watkins) - an antique sword with paperwork attesting to the "fact" that the South won the Civil War.

A strange and entertaining adventure ensues as the 3 join forces with a kid who works at the pawn shop (Bass) to try and find a high-end buyer for the unique relic from a time that didn't really even exist.

Quirky without being contrived, funny and tight (88 minutes - I saw it with a post-film Q&A where director Shelton said "a comedy should be 90 minutes"), the film serves as a tailor-made vehicle for the strengths of its main protagonist (Maron) and a small, solid supporting cast. Much of the dialogue was improvised, yet none of it feels forced, and it also manages to poke fun at the culture of "alternative facts" which is slowly seeping into all corners of society without being malicious (making one of the GOOD guys an unapologetic flat-earther helps to spread the sympathy/blame around).

Worth a watch on screens big or small. Watkins and Bell have a nice chemistry, Bass plays a simpleton a bit TOO convincingly, and, despite the fact that he regularly self-deprecates to the contrary on his podcast, Maron is really coming into his own as an actor.

I just finished watching "Sword of Trust" and I give it above average marks as a movie. I thought it had good entertainment value, it had something to say without preaching it, it was well cast and well written. It was a low budget movie which used its resources wisely. And above all, it made no pretentions to be anything but what it was, and that puts it above average right there. I was not familiar with the works of Maron or Shelton prior to this movie, but I will look out for their names in future. The story is simple and contains appropriate weirdness for this time in which it was made. Early on a pair of women receive an unexpected inheritance from the estate of an ancient relative: a Civil War sword that is argued to be "proof" that the South won the Civil War. I think writer even invented a new internet term, 'prover' (at least I had not heard it before). A pawnshop owner gets involved and the action mostly revolves around the interactions of the characters involved. I enjoyed Marc Maron's writing and acting, the writing was wryly humorous and observant. The acting was understated. I especially liked Jon Bass' performance as the internet junkie (barely) staffing the pawnshop. Michael Watkins and Jillian Bells' character interactions were believable to a point and well acted. Supporting character Toby Huss was properly 'over' acted and Dan Bakkedahl was solid. I think it was well directed, well acted, the dialogue was cute and humorous for the most part. The background music went well with the rural/ semi-suburban ambiance of the picture, which I also liked. Some of the action is improbable, but it is no more improbable than most movies, including high dollar high attendance shows that are not as entertaining. This movie is about ordinary Americans in an age where the most ridiculous ideas are peddled to all and sundry allowing anybody to partake of any of a collosal amount of conspiracy theories including that the earth is flat. If you like this movie at all you may be interested in a great audio album that predates the internet by a couple score years but does not predate the current insanity: Firesign Theatre's "Everything You Know is Wrong". It was consistently funny and way way ahead of its time. And still is.

Firstly this film is awful, about as funny as a root canal, and more tedious. I am certain that the only people giving it a passing grade of over three stars must be the poor put upon family members of the film's makers. Faux "authenticity" by having no script and non-actors (or lousy actors) serves whose interests? The audiences? Certainly not.

I have a lot of tolerance for low budget production, but not when there is no redeeming positive factor. GCI is expensive, but interesting storyline, characters or dialogue are not expensive. This clunker has none.

The "alternative reality" is present alright: someone with no talent went to film school and thinks that alone will suffice. It doesn't.