Side Effects

I saw this last month at the 2008 Palm Springs International Short Fest. In this comedy short, Paul (Arye Gross) needs a refill of his Seconal prescription from his neighborhood pharmacy but is met by resistance from a reluctant pharmacist Jo (Amanda Tepe) who would rather dispense advice on Paul's marriage breakup than drugs. Playwright and stage producer Chuck Rose wrote and directed this smart and witty film. His short film resume is pretty short in itself have only done four shorts in 10 years. The screenplay to this was in fact written 10 years ago and he finally got around to putting it on film. I certainly would like to more from Rose and a feature film would be nice too. He certainly obtained some great talent for this cast in television supporting role veterans Gross and Tepe and they work wonderfully well together here. Also in the cast in a small role seen in flashback as Pauls wife is another talent from film and television Robyn Cohen. This was shot in one night at an actual pharmacy that Rose obtained permission to use while they were closed but only for one night of shooting. Rose was on hand at my screening for an audience Q&A. I really liked this film and would give it an 8.5 out of 10 and recommend it.