Just as there is a surge in the attention being paid to flash fiction (stories that are limited, in general, to 1000 words) and other evidences that we are running too fast through life to really commit to just about anything (relationships, long novels, thoughtful motion pictures, food that requires more than 40 seconds to 3 minutes in the microwave, instant weight loss, chats on the computer or cell phone rather than sit down conversations, etc), so here is a DVD that presents five stories with the loose theme of love. In some ways these vignettes work - quickie ideas that don't merit further exploration than what is offered - and in more ways they seem so poorly made that even the excuse of low budget can't cover the results.
This DVD is five stories, briefly described as one form of love and the results, given a name, and then proceeds to a short story attempted to make passable by the use of star names but self-defeating in the fact that they seem shot on home video gear - grainy, poorly focused, meaningless lighting, and embarrassingly bad script writing. SUMMER HOUSE (shot in Normandy we are informed in the credits stars a house with the incidental, very brief placement of Robert Pattinson in the deep shadows as the love who got away from Talulah Riley and who wants back. BLUE POLES is a truck ride in Australia with Sam Worthington on his way to Canberra to see a painting called 'Blue Poles' and offers a ride to Emma Randall whose naiveté crossroads don't seem to alter the driver's desires. GRASSHOPPER places James Franco on a train with Rachel Miner, a Goth-like sex kitten who retrieves Franco's cell phone and opens a thankfully brief silly near blackmail episode to retrieve the cell phone - with a corny twist at the end. PENNIES places Amy Adams in a diner, taking a job as a waitress to make enough cash to keep her daughter from being 'cut' - the 'cut turns out to be less than dramatic - and discovers the varieties of people's reactions to diner help on several levels. AUTO MOTIVES deals with cars - Michael Imperioli tries in vain to seduce girls into his car parked in Washington Square while Robert Downey Jr appears VERY briefly as a car detailer who wants to get in front of the attention of Director James Cameron.
Why make this five-part movie? Perhaps it is a project of a wealthy philanthropist who needs a diversion, perhaps it is payback for favors in the industry. The material is lack luster and it is surprising that the star actors took on the project. But then step back and consider the means: this is one way to get flash fiction on the screen for little money and a lot of hope that people will buy into the concept that from little seeds, gardens grow.
Grady Harp
