Delco: The Movie

Went in with low expectations knowing it was a crowd funded, low budget movie and got what I expected. It played as what someone would submit for a class project. Not enough Delco stereo types. It only focused on the Aston section, no aerial shots of row homes, it made Delco look nice. Could have been funnier and a little disappointed in the casting. The female lead looked 32 playing an 18yr old. Funny that both male leads were THAT religious and went to public school. I didn't know any public school kids that much into their faith so to have the movie centered around two felt off. Not the worst was just hoping for better.

I had high hopes for this film, and they were met and succeeded in many places. This is a wonderful freshman romp from director Chris Pierdomenico. A funny, heartfelt love letter to my adoptive hometown.

The film stands its ground in beliefs and morals, and shows how the unexpected support from good friends can make you a wonderful version of yourself. Aside from making those statements, the film is beautifully shot and the cinematography holds up as well.

Overall, if you're looking for a warm, fun, good, clean (and whatever other adjectives you'd like to supplant) coming of age tale, you've found it.

The opening is a montage of all Delco locations which will be familiar to anyone from Delco. Nearly follows a classical climactic structure, as the movie takes places in just a bit more than 24 hours. The inclusion of Brian O'Halloran definitely gives the movie a View Askewniverse connection, and Brian A Wilson is a "that guy!" character actor who has appeared in many shows and movies. You may also recognize original American Idol co-host Brian Dunkleman, and J. J Cohen from Back to the Future (dork thinks he's gonna drown!) shows up, and gets to call the teenaged characters "dorks!"

Chris is a talented guy, and I fully expect to see several more projects set in this universe. Also, if you're worried about this being "a religious movie", you may be missing the point of the movie, and the arc of Wayne, one of the three main characters. All the young leads are excellent, and the video game clerks steal the show in several scenes! Also, who knew Ms Skivo had such acting chops?

I got on board with this movie back when the crowdfunding started, and have followed it all the way through til the premiere. Why? Because nobody frickin talks about Delco, and this movie is. It manages to piece together a genuine picture of what life was like as a teenager growing up in Delco - one defined by isolation, grittiness, and self-loathing. I grew up here, in fact, and took the very first opportunity I had to get out and never come back.

I went into this movie as somebody who hated this county, and oddly enough, by the end, I felt a new sympathy for Delco, largely because this movie asks the simple question, "why does everyone from Delco hate on it so much?"

I thought that it struck a careful balance between portraying Delco as a living stereotype and portraying Delco as a believable place that people live. The story is simple, well-rounded, and every plot thread that begins has an end somewhere - which is way more than I can say for movies that even A24 is releasing these days. Character development is easy to grasp, and religious themes are largely cursory; the conclusion of the story makes it clear that the lead character has to reach a new, less fundamentalist understanding of faith.

Scenes tend to run on in parts, but I liked that a lot of the ancillary characters were given enough airtime to actually have a real personality; it felt truer to most high school romp films that way.

All in all, I think this is a pretty good film. Delco is a character in the story, not the joke of it, and I think that's a meaningful distinction. It means that people outside of Delco will understand and be able to access the movie, but if you're from here or connected to here, you're guaranteed to have a real emotional connection. See it if you can.

Overall I enjoyed this film. It didn't need to be flashy, didn't need current events/songs shoved down its throat, it's just a movie with three teenagers in a county that people love to hate, but feels emptiness when they leave. The actors played their roles very well, and we also see the main three develop as they continue doing their nonsense. If you lived/currently live in Delco, you gotta see this at least once. For as quickly as this movie was made and with a very tight budget, it was very good and definitely had moments where I went "I know where that place is". It was meant to have people from multiple parts of the county to come together and enjoy this and it did just that and then some.