A recent trend that seems overused in films is the creation of scripts with groups of people who are friends but have no business being friends in the first place. In other words, when you think about these characters, they simply have nothing in common and are more clichés or formulaic than realistic people. This isn't just true in comedies like the "Hangover" or "Bridesmaids" films but in dramas as well, such as in the new British indie film Life Just Is-- where there are many of the usual formulaic characters (such as the gay character, the black character, etc.) but you keep wondering why they spend time together. And, by the end of the movie, I was still wondering. Why be friends with someone you don't like or someone who treats you terribly?!
This film written and directed by Alex Barrett starts off on an inauspicious note. As four friends are watching some movie, it concludes and one of them says "Well that's an hour and a half of my life I won't get back". Then a couple more friends are soon introduced. Soon after this, you learn that one of their acquaintances has died and the way these mostly 20-somethings respond to this is what makes up the remainder of the film. In many ways, it's a bit like "The Big Chill"...but without the music (in fact, there isn't any and this is very noticeable) or the energy. But it's also much talkier--with folks mostly sitting around talking and talking and talking. This, combined with the low energy make this a difficult film to watch or even finish.
So is the film worth seeing? Probably not unless you are extremely patient. Oddly, I looked through the reviews for this on IMDb and noticed that folks either gave it a 1 or 9 or higher. I wouldn't be nearly as harsh or as glowing and I really do wonder about both sorts of reviews--especially the 9s and 10s. I'd give this one a D+. I certainly wouldn't rush to see it but also saw some promise and hope that the filmmakers and actors use this experience as a springboard to greater things.
