The Maladjusted

I had a great time with The Maladjusted. It's a raunchy comedy about a bunch of 30somethings that are coming of age - maybe way to late. But hey, better late than never, right? The characters are familiar enough that we quickly feel like we know them, but fresh enough that there is still more to discover and some surprises to be had. The movie strikes a nice balance between the light and the dark, though the gross-out humor might cross the line for some here and there (I had no problems with it). For the most part the cast does a really solid job, my favorite being Clayton Meyers whose endearing oddball (Carl) was always fun to watch. This almost felt like the sequel that should have been to the American Pie movies; where the guys that partied throughout their teens and twenties have hit the proverbial wall and need to man up or be doomed to the sad existence of desperately trying to be a twenty year old when you are so obviously not. In that sense I felt like John C. Bailey's character of Yon served as almost a Ghost of Christmas Future to the guys - showing them where they are likely to wind up if they don't change. Anyway, good cast, good laughs, lots of fun and gasps (and tons of music), check it out if you get a chance.

I was fortunate enough to see the premiere of The Maladjusted recently, a proper summer time comedy. I should probably qualify "proper" to mean, all the stuff you want to see in a raunchy comedy. This is a great summer time movie for adults. Leave the kids at home for this one, but as we all know, the best comedies are for the older audiences. There are some genuinely funny performances and quotable lines of dialogue. A personal favorite was the brief discussion about a good massage vs. a bad massage.

I do wish the three main characters would have been a little less two dimensional. I felt like the character of Nikki was the most developed but her appearances only bookend the movie. However, let's be real, do you go see this kind of comedy for deep character development? Probably not. This minor complaint did not diminish my enjoyment of the movie at all. The Maladjusted is definitely worth seeing again.

I have not always been the biggest fan of independent films and often quickly lose interest as the plot wavers. However I was pleasantly surprised when The Maladjusted kept me laughing throughout the whole movie. Often very raunchy comedy, I found it to be of the humor that only I and some of my closest friends appreciate, but often would not repeat outside of our group. Rarely do you find that type of humor outside the closed circles of a group of guys. Equally surprising was the reaction of my date who laughed unwittingly at some of the more graphic scenes that I would have expected her to gag at. It is a rare form of quality to evoke laughter from a woman that would sooner slap me across the face for the same joke. Well Done!

Before I start off the review I will come clean and admit I did supply 3 music tracks to this film for Dance club and party scenes. I however, did not take part in the on-the-set filming process, nor did I see the completed film until my screener was sent to me in the mail.

The Maladjusted, is the new independent feature film from co-writer and director Chris Kiros.

The Maladjusted follows 3 close knit friends, Ian, the early 30's bartender ladies man, Carl, the nerd-ish, misaligned individual obsessed with sex, and Robbie, the semi-sensitive artist. Robbie, who is a writer is having some issues trying to finish his book, and decides to take on odd work to pay the bills, finds that his friends plan an all out weekend of relaxation and fun, or is it? Turns out Ian has a small trick up his sleeve and wants to bring some joy into his buddies lives so enter their weekend at the beach in a double booked rental with 3 ladies played by Katie Foster, Tiffany Shepis, and Alexandra Turshen.

Now to get this out of the way, Tiffany Shepis, mostly known for indie horror, really surprised me playing a non blood covered live, it on the wild side kind of gal. I actually was waiting at some point for Kiros to order up a 50 gallon drum of blood to soak her down at some point just to keep her reputation as a scream queen going, and to give her fans something to smile about. Well it never happens, and I was impressed with the work she turned in as the "Ice Cold B****" Carl keeps referring to her as throughout the film. However, Carl gets something from Tiffany I guarantee any of her male fans would give their left nut for... and that is all I am going to say on that.

Robbie, the writer, played by George Katz, has a sensitive side to him that works throughout the film. He isn't the typical alpha male that his friend Ian proudly displays like a merit badge. George turns out a great performance and I was glad he was part of the cast, but my one distraction though is that Robbie looks a bit like Johnny Galecki, and when he hooks up with Laura I started having Big Bang Theory withdrawal. Yes Laura, played by Katie Foster looks like Kaley Cucco from the show.

The Maladjusted is best described, in my opinion as a young adults American Pie, but with style and pizazz. The script by Chris Kiros and Elias Dancey has extremely well scripted dialog, the direction is good, and the editing is just about perfect.

This is an indie movie for late 20's early 30's adults who want to just say the hell with it, spend a weekend, and talk about the crap they pulled off throughout their lives and get a good laugh about it. With a running time of 100 minutes, you're never bored, the laughs are good, and you won't walk out or shut off the movie because of stupidity moments. This is one of those lower budget films that works as both a micro budget indie but if given the budget would have worked as a wide release indie comedy, sort of like Garden State.

All in all, having finally gotten to see it, I never looked at my watch, or stopped the film to find something else to use my time on. For an indie project I think it is well done, and executed and should be a must see for indie adult comedy film lovers.

8 out of 10

I was so impressed with how this film turned out. Great work by the Director and DP. The acting was believable, and the crowd at the premiere was laughing genuinely throughout the entire film. This was not only a result of great writing, but also spot-on timing by the actors. Clayton Myers stood out to me by really nailing the role of Carl. I am also very impressed with the scoring. The music was among the best I have heard in an indie film. I will not be surprised to see the awards start piling up from the festivals. If you have the opportunity to see The Maladjusted on the schedule for one of the festivals you are attending I would make every effort to grab a seat. Just be careful not to get one next to Yan Zamolla.