Melvin Goes to Dinner

Michael Blieden wrote the play in which the film is based. "Melvin Goes to Dinner" is a fast paced adaptation directed by Bob Odenkirk. It was a refreshing movie in which the writer, Mr. Blieden, has opened up the play in a satisfying way.

The premise of the film is a dinner among friends. During the dinner we get to know the dynamics among the diners. These yuppies are not the shallow individuals we might have taken them for. During the course of the dinner while the tongues get loose with the drinking, we realize what's really going on. The conversation is easy, and friendly, which is what happens when people that haven't seen one another for some period of time, will pick up where they left off the last time they met.

The young cast is likable. The author, Michael Blieden plays the leading role of Melvin. Matt Rice is Joey. Annabelle Gurwitch is Sarah, the woman who is connected to one of the friends in a way the others have no idea. The revelation makes sense. Stephanie Courtney, as Alex, is good. Jack Black appears in a cameo.

Bring another bottle of Pinot Noir, please!

I got the DVD of this in the mail yesterday, went home early, played it all the way through, got a new drink from the kitchen and watched it all the way through a second time.

I don't think I've ever done that before, and I see hundreds of movies a year.

Although maintaining the four-person-play character of the staged production, the guest stars that fill the incidental role are terrific, and their presence just makes more perfect how the entirety of the movie comes together at the end -- which it really does, though a second viewing is helpful in realizing it.

Don't miss this gem!

Melvin (Writer Micheal Blieden, adapting his own stage play for the small screen), meets up with friends, old and new, over dinner and has a conversation about ghosts, religion, sex, secrets, and religion (not necessarily in that order). The conversation itself is engaging and flows nicely, but the scenes out of the restaurant,though not without merit (David Cross, Jack Black, and Maura Tierney, have good parts in said parts), tend to mess up the flow of the film somewhat. And based on the film I'd be interested in seeing the play.

My Grade: B-

DVD Extras: Commentary by Bob Odenkirk, Micheal Blieden, and cast members; Second Commentary by Odenkirk, Blieden, the producers, composer, and Cinematographer; "The Frank International Film Festical" (a funny 15 minute skit); Scenes from the stage play Phyro-Giants!"; Trailers for "the Slaughter Rule", "Swimming", "Mule Skinner Blues", "Searching for Paradise", "the Hired Hand", "the Other Side of the Bed", "In This World", "Dopamine", and a promo for the Sundance film series

DVD-ROM: Screenplay in PDF format

Nearly all of Melvin Goes to Dinner's brief running time is spent observing a rambling but always interesting dinner conversation among four variously connected people in their late twenties. I was very impressed by both the writing and the acting. It's rare enough that we get even brief conversations that sound right, like real people really speak to each other; Here we have over an hour's worth.

All of the performances are very good. I especially liked Stephanie Courtney's ability to make Alex simultaneously annoying and charming. Others have noted the wonderful cameo by Jack Black as a mental patient with an impressively detailed conception of reality.

If you find yourself looking for a break from CGI and other special effects, give Melvin Goes to Dinner a try. The best thing I can say about it is that as soon as it ended, I wanted to watch it again from the beginning.

I caught Melvin Goes To Dinner in one of only 45 seats in the Private Screening Room at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, MA. I knew going into the theater, that I was in for brilliance, as I have been with anything I've seen that was associated with Bob Odenkirk. Regretfully, I had never heard the name Michael Blieden before this film. I look forward to seeing more of his work, whether it be as an actor or writer in the future.

This is a poignant, no holds barred, almost voyeuristic look into the lives of a group of people eating dinner together. As the dinner progresses, so do the intricacies of each these individual's' life unfold, as each bears their souls through the dinnertime conversation.

While definitely humorous, the film is not light-hearted. Appearances by Jack Black, David Cross, and Bob Odenkirk are well-placed within the various stories that unfold. Every minute of the film kept my attention and kept me hungering for more. This is definitely a film that will keep giving if seen more than once.

An absolutely brilliant film that I thoroughly enjoyed and can't wait until it comes out on video or DVD so that I can add it to my much coveted collection of films. I highly recommend catching this film.