I'm Reed Fish

Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel) hosts a radio call-in show whose audience is as loyal in spirit as it is infinitesimal in size. His listener-ship is comprised exclusively of the citizens of Mud Meadows, a small town discreetly nestled in the pine-encrusted mountains of Southern California (the movie was filmed in the scenic Big Bear area). Although he's come to be known as "The Voice of Mud Meadows" for keeping the town folk apprised on issues of concern to the local community, Fish really isn't all that happy with his life. He actually feels hemmed in by the restrictions of small town life and is beginning to have second thoughts about his impending marriage to a childhood friend, Kate (Alexis Bledel), whom he may be marrying more out of a sense of duty and obligation than out of genuine love or passion. His life gets even more complicated when Jill (Schuyler Fisk), a girl he once had a crush on, returns to Mud Meadows for the summer, stirring up old feelings in him and making him question even more the level of his commitment to Kate.

Based on a semi-autobiographical story by none other than Reed Fish himself, "I'm Reed Fish" is an utterly beguiling indie comedy, overflowing with sweet sentiment, rueful humor and outstanding performances by Baruchel, Fisk, Bledel, Victor Rasuk, Katey Sagal and Chris Parnell, well known from his work on "Saturday Night Live." Not only are the characters themselves immensely charming and likable but their responses to the situations they find themselves in are believable and touching as well. "I'm Reed Fish," written by Fish and directed by Zackary Adler, is smart about the complexities of romantic relationships, and the movie is filled with any number of beautiful and lovely moments, the most transcendent being the one in which Jill (Fisk) literally lights up the screen with her musical performance at a local pub. As a writer, Fish is scrupulously fair to the characters he's created, avoiding the obvious temptation to paint Kate, in particular, as a fool or a harridan just so he can enhance Jill's virtues in the viewer's eyes. This equanimity makes the protagonist's romantic dilemma all that much more compelling and empathetic for the audience caught up in the story.

As lagniappe, the writer has placed the story in an offbeat film-within-a-film framework that gives the movie an extra added kick at the end.

A cute, small, character driven movie about a guy who looks 15 but is apparently in his mid 20's. On the eve of his wedding, his high school crush comes back to the small town where they grew up. Predictable angst ensues. The soundtrack is good if you like emo country soft rock. The performances are fine, too. Alexis Bledel is very lucky to get so much work considering she only has the one persona. Jay Baruchel channels Zach Braff, which brings me to the main problem with the movie. Unfortunately, it is hard to accept the reality of a town of gorgeous women who inexplicably love scrawny unattractive boys. Worth seeing if you can get it for free, otherwise wait for it to be on Lifetime or MTV.

In Mud Meadows, a small community somewhere north of Texas, Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel) is a jack-of-all-trades radio broadcaster and DJ for the local and heavily followed station. The mayor (Katey Segal) is his sidekick and astrologist for the morning program. Also in Reed's future, is a wedding to the lovely Kate (Alexis Bledel), the daughter of the richest and most prolific businessman in town. The ceremony is only weeks away, with Kate and her mother making most of the decisions. Does Reed show some reluctance? He does, and it gets worse when a former flame, er, crush of Reed's comes back to town. Jill (Schuyler Fisk) is staying with her folks before entering law school. Still beautiful and available, Reed is thrown for a loop. Should he break things off with Kate and go after Jill? Does Jill even have any regard for him? Also, what about Reed's chosen profession, which he inherited from his local legend father? Is this really what Mr. Fish wants to do or does he have secret, other ambitions? This charming but odd film looks at life in a small town and its, sometimes, eccentric characters. The cast is wonderful, with Baruchel, Bledel, Segal, and all of the others doing nice work. Especially great is Fisk, who gets a chance to display her strong singing/songwriting talents as well as her acting chops. Why isn't this lady in more films? It's a puzzlement. The sets are a fun look at village locale while costumes, script, direction, and photography all come out ahead of the pack. Nevertheless, those who don't like the above description or romantic dramas, may not find it their cup of tea. But, if it sounds good to anyone, brew a pot and sip, watch, enjoy.

I saw the movie last night at the film festival in Hamburg. It's a fun movie with a lot of great actors in it. I really enjoyed it and just want to encourage people to go see it. Without giving away to much - I don't think it particularly needed the story within the story - let me just say that. Besides that, it was a lot of fun to watch and the music in the movie is great. Schuyler Fisk is amazing! She has a great voice as well as good acting skills - I really hope to see more of her in the future! The location was well chosen - beautiful shots of the surroundings as well as the village! all in all -> great indie movie, and even more appreciated after hearing from reed fish how much work went into doing this movie in just 18 days!

This film has more in common with a Lifetime cable film than a standard theatrical release. The small budget and short shooting schedule show.

The story seems padded and bogs down at times. The incident that causes the rift that is the backbone of the script comes out of left field and is not very believable even in the context of the film. There must be a reason why the goofy guy gets two hot babes to fall for him; just don't ask me what it is. The script doesn't flesh it out and it becomes merely a plot point. Reed Fish's "demons" are mentioned but are only presented in a superficially way.

In my opinion, more time should have been spent in humanizing the main characters and less time on the zorse. Still, the "shaggy dog" part of the script was refreshing and added a depth to an otherwise familiar story.

The actors are all type cast, but very good at what they do. Alexis Bledel and Schuyer Fisk are adorably amazing. Jay Baruchel once again does an nice job as a schlub. DJ Qualls, AJ Cook and Katey Sagal have their moments.

Forget the hype. It is not a sexy laugh riot. But if you're looking to spend 93 minutes with a pleasant cast and a flawed (but agreeable) script, "I'm Reed Fish" is a good place to visit.