Sword of Trust

Cynthia (Jillian Bell) and her wife Mary (Michaela Watkins) visit Alabama, and learn that Cynthia has inherited a Civil War sword from her grandfather. They try to sell it to pawn shop owner Mel (Marc Maron), while Mel's slacker employee Nathaniel (Jon Bass) observes. But there's something special about the sword, which leads them to artifact collector "Kingpin" (David Bakkedahl).

7 Good The story, by Lynn Shelton and Mike O'Brien, is a rather silly, but makes an excellent framework for comedy improvisation. A story revision based on a script note added a nice touch of respect for southerners. Shelton does a very good job of directing. The main cast all deliver excellent comedy and good dramatic performances; Shelton herself is very good in a small dramatic role. Maron provides very good music.

Overall, I rate the film good.

Languages: English.

Rating: I don't think this film has a US rating (yet), but I'd guess it would rate a "R", for language.

I just finished watching "Sword of Trust" and I give it above average marks as a movie. I thought it had good entertainment value, it had something to say without preaching it, it was well cast and well written. It was a low budget movie which used its resources wisely. And above all, it made no pretentions to be anything but what it was, and that puts it above average right there. I was not familiar with the works of Maron or Shelton prior to this movie, but I will look out for their names in future. The story is simple and contains appropriate weirdness for this time in which it was made. Early on a pair of women receive an unexpected inheritance from the estate of an ancient relative: a Civil War sword that is argued to be "proof" that the South won the Civil War. I think writer even invented a new internet term, 'prover' (at least I had not heard it before). A pawnshop owner gets involved and the action mostly revolves around the interactions of the characters involved. I enjoyed Marc Maron's writing and acting, the writing was wryly humorous and observant. The acting was understated. I especially liked Jon Bass' performance as the internet junkie (barely) staffing the pawnshop. Michael Watkins and Jillian Bells' character interactions were believable to a point and well acted. Supporting character Toby Huss was properly 'over' acted and Dan Bakkedahl was solid. I think it was well directed, well acted, the dialogue was cute and humorous for the most part. The background music went well with the rural/ semi-suburban ambiance of the picture, which I also liked. Some of the action is improbable, but it is no more improbable than most movies, including high dollar high attendance shows that are not as entertaining. This movie is about ordinary Americans in an age where the most ridiculous ideas are peddled to all and sundry allowing anybody to partake of any of a collosal amount of conspiracy theories including that the earth is flat. If you like this movie at all you may be interested in a great audio album that predates the internet by a couple score years but does not predate the current insanity: Firesign Theatre's "Everything You Know is Wrong". It was consistently funny and way way ahead of its time. And still is.

Firstly this film is awful, about as funny as a root canal, and more tedious. I am certain that the only people giving it a passing grade of over three stars must be the poor put upon family members of the film's makers. Faux "authenticity" by having no script and non-actors (or lousy actors) serves whose interests? The audiences? Certainly not.

I have a lot of tolerance for low budget production, but not when there is no redeeming positive factor. GCI is expensive, but interesting storyline, characters or dialogue are not expensive. This clunker has none.

The "alternative reality" is present alright: someone with no talent went to film school and thinks that alone will suffice. It doesn't.

I came across this while browsing for something easy to watch, the synopsis almost swayed me away but I'm glad I watched it. It's a (mostly) light hearted comedy that has quite a few funny moments.

If you ever listen to Marc Maron's podcast, WTF, this is a movie you won't want to miss. Also for fans of the Netflix series Glow, you're already familiar with Marc's accessible, honest work on the little screen. Don't believe any of the negative reviews for this film. Marc's performance is a tour-de-force, just check out the New York Times review of this original masterpiece. It's a quirky comedy, perfect for summer. Expertly directed with a wonderful tone, the film is worth watching twice, at least. Come on people, do we all just need to keep seeing pre-awareness content out of the Marvel universe which is sucking the life force and brain cells from us all? Rally around original movies that feature real talent and genuine craftsmanship. Also Marc plays all the guitar on the soundtrack and it's nice to hear.