You Are Alone

I caught this at the Chicago IndieFest and have to say YOU ARE ALONE is a lot funnier than the other reviews and even the website would lead you to think. Not HA HA Wedding Crashers' funny, but sick, twisted, I can't believe she just said that but it's so damn true funny.

Jessica Bohl, who deservedly won Best Actress, is amazing to watch. There's never a moment when you think oh, I'm watching a movie and she's an actress. She's too damn real for words.

In fact there's 2 scenes that I'm still giggling over, and I won't give them away, but in one she's in the bathroom talking about how much she gets paid for performing a certain service and how "awesome" it is. (I almost wonder how many people in the audience are secretly thinking the same thing!!!)

In another she talks about a teenagers definition of "sex" versus an adults, and if it isn't the truest dialog I've heard in a movie in a long time, I don't know what is.

Striking, intelligent micro budget film about loneliness, as captured during an afternoon encounter between a Yale bound high school senior who's a prostitute in her spare time, and an older, depressed neighbor.

Both the film and the two generally excellent lead performances (by unknowns Jessica Bohl and Richard Brundage) do get stagy at times. The film takes place largely in one room. And I wish I didn't see the twist ending coming. In fact, I sort of wish it wasn't there at all. While it almost works, I didn't think the film needed it, and it felt tacked on, as if from another, more conventionally 'dramatic' film.

The film is at it's best when it's dealing in simple emotional honesty, and the complexity of these characters lives. That's where this film shines – in avoiding the clichés we've come to expect in two characters like this. She may be living a dark existence, but she's getting something from it too. He's a man who can't let himself even indulge in fantasy, and it's part of why he's so blocked as a human being.

For a film that's all about sex and sexuality, it's surprisingly chaste, while still having uncomfortable erotic overtones and questions – both for the characters and the audience. Are we sick for having moments when this young girl turns us on? Is she sick for enjoying that power?

I also appreciated that the dialogue is often elliptical, and that silence is as important as words.

Not quite a great film, but an impressive effort to do something original.

Do not watch this movie if you're depressed. It is VERY depressing. That being said, it is a great, low budget film with great dialogue. The actress really shines. It will stick with you.

There were moments when watching, "You Are Alone" at the New England Film + Video Festival recently, when I felt the lead characters seemed very familiar, like old college friends, who gradually become larger than life. The journey these characters undertake is at turns, poignant and hilarious, and a testament to the artistry of screenwriter/director, Gorman Bechard, who wrought such authentic characters, and the actors, Jessica Bohl (Daphne/Britney) and Richard Brundage (Buddy), who brought them to life.

Several comparisons have been made to Coppola's, "Lost in Translation." To me, the film was more reminiscent of Pen-ek Ratanaruang's, "Last Life In the Universe," in terms of its edgy, melancholic beauty, laced with the kind of smoky humor I associate with Jarmusch and the hermetic intimacy of Roehmer.

Finally, much well-deserved ado has already been made about Bechard and Bohl, about which I heartily agree. The only new comment I might add is that the unsung hero in all of this is Richard Brundage, whose nuanced portrayal of Buddy blends equal parts sweetness and menace with deft, and who provides an aching flow of innocence and Weltschmerz to counterpoint and draw out the character of Daphne/Britney.

Kudos to all involved in, "You Are Alone."

Initially I wasn't especially interested in watching this movie but figured I'd watch something different for a change of pace-I'm glad I did. It's not a particularly engaging film but if you pay close attention to the relationship between the two characters the plot unfolds quite nicely with a shocking twist at the end. Very unexpected conclusion and a very interesting journey throughout the film with really raw emotional risks taken by both of the main characters. Really solid, well written film that delivers.