Working Stiff

Though I stumbled upon this movie because nothing else was playing, I'm awfully glad I did. This independent film was creative, quirky, short (not another 2 hour epic), and just generally fabulous. The writing was excellent, funny without falling back on the cliched humor of today's Hollywood films. The acting was great; these unknowns will not be unknown for long. A must see!

We went to see this indy film based on a word of mouth recommendation and

were quite impressed! It is well acted, well written, well directed, well filmed, and a lot of fun. It starts with a good premise about a guy who makes training videos for his company. When he is threatened with losing his apartment unless he can come up with $10k fast, he allows himself to be talked into using the

company video facilities to make a porn film on the sly. Needless to say,

mayhem follows. But it's the clever way the mayhem unfolds and is handled

that makes this film a 'keeper.' There are dozens of hilarious little moments and a nice little love story here.

The cast is populated with actors I've never heard of or seen before, but there wasn't a bad performance in the whole crew. I especially liked the female lead - who I think has the talent and looks to make it big if this movie were to be seen by anybody.

It is a better movie by far than the great majority of major release retreads, sequels, and shoot-em-ups at the cineplex these days. However, it is enjoying a very limited release. I heard that it might go to Sundance. If so, that might get it picked up for more widespread distribution. If not, this clever little film might just die of obscurity. Too bad.

Gregory Joyce's writing and directing debut is funny and clever, with considerable charm, although there is some uneveness in the storytelling toward the end of the film. The actors, however, are all excellent. John P. Arnold is a particular standout as the office's requisitely evil boss. I hope this little indy gets wider distribution and the attention it deserves.

I'm a big fan of indie movies. Saw this one at a local theater in Arlington. The storyline is kept pretty simple and character development is scant, but for what its worth, this was a fun way to kill some time after work. The acting was so-so and the editing was quite a bit scrappy with extended transitions between scenes, that otherwise should have been more streamlined.

Kudos to the maker and the theater for putting this up. Not often we have Boston-based movies playing in the area.