Rainbow Time

Executive produced by the Duplass Brothers, writer/director/co-star Linas Phillips' slice-of-life comedic drama "Rainbow Time" is a fairly engaging and accomplished little film that seems to have flown really under the radar for most audiences. A sort-of character piece that explores the lives of two brothers and the people around them, each with their own set of problems and circumstances, the movie is a successful and often amusing little tale that delivers enough consistent chuckles and contemplative moments of thoughts that I would definitely recommend it to open-minded viewers. Sure, I do have some minor squabbles with the occasionally shaky narrative, but on the whole, yeah... I found myself pretty much completely entertained and charmed throughout the 90 minute run-time.

Timm Sharp and Melanie Lynskey portray young couple Todd and Lindsay, who are going through a bit of stress as Lindsay is in the middle of a messy divorce that's being strung out by her ex-husband. At the same time, Todd has a shaky relationship with his brother "Shonzi" (director Phillips), whom suffers from a major developmental disability and lives with their widower father Peter, played by the criminally underrated Tobin Bell. Shonzi, who doesn't really understand social cues or boundaries, is obsessed with making movies and struggles with what can only be described as an incredibly overactive libido, constantly hitting on and making inadvertently inappropriate comments to virtually every woman he meets. When Peter is left hospitalized following an apparent heart-attack, Todd and Lindsay are forced to take Shonzi into their home to look after him while his father recovers, resulting in a great deal of personal drama as the situation brings about some troubling revelations about both Todd and Shonzi.

The film's strengths lay in its absolutely remarkable performances, and for the sensitive exploration of sexual and romantic issues and themes that many people face in their own lives. Phillips is exceptionally good as Shonzi, and I really appreciate the fact that film doesn't sugar-coat the character and instead treats him as a real person- he's flawed, often selfish, and sometimes manipulative... yet you still root for him because you get the feeling that perhaps his family just didn't know how to deal with him and weren't able to teach him proper self-discipline. He's very likable despite his rampant faults, and you completely understand where he's coming from. Sharp is fantastic as the troubled Todd, and gives the film a great sense of pathos. He's a very real person, and his struggles with doing the right thing by both Shonzi and Lindsay make for some compelling moments, especially when some of his awkward and troubling secrets are revealed. Lynskey is exceptional in her role, playing Lindsay as a sort-of New Age, modern feminist whose trying to juggle her roles as girlfriend to Todd while also trying to be a bit of en emotional mentor to Shonzi. And I gotta give a lot of credit to Tobin Bell in his supporting role as Peter. Bell is known to most for his more sinister and threatening roles, including his outstanding turn as the lead villain in the "Saw" film series... but a lot of people seem to forget that he's just a darned good actor with a great range. And though his screen time is a bit limited, he plays the role of a grieving father trying to do the best he can living with a disabled son to perfection.

The film also excels in how intelligently and thoughtfully it handles many issues that people in today's world face. A large focus of the film is placed on the various sexual hangups and intimacy issues that Todd, Lindsay and Shonzi face in their lives. Things like pornographic addiction, trust issues, voyeurism and sexual addition are touched on and developed in a grounded and realistic way while also occasionally giving the film a moment of levity with a couple laughs thrown in. It never feels overdone, nor improperly handled, and it helps to define the storyline, characters and conflicts in a very unique and touching way. A lot of people have their little kinks, worries, insecurities or ticks when it comes to these subjects, but they're usually just made into broad jokes or slap-sticky gags when explored in movies. So it's pretty refreshing to see a film like this that explores these ideas head-on and in a true-to-life fashion.

That being said, I do think there are some inherent issues with the storytelling, mainly in the department of pacing and structure. At only 90 minutes, the film does feel a bit too brisk for its own good at times, and as a result certain characters and themes do feel a bit underdeveloped. And yet, at the same time it can drag here and there, leading to that unfortunate situation you sometimes get where a film can be both a tad bit jarring while also being occasionally dull. And it does have a somewhat negative impact on a few key scenes. Not enough that it ruins the film by any means, but enough that I would say it can be fairly noticeable. I don't think it's the fault of the script necessarily... it just feels like perhaps the movie could have used another pass in the editing department. A few scenes could be tightened up, while others could be expanded upon.

Still, I can't say that it has too major of an impact on the movie, because on the whole, I think "Rainbow Time" is genuinely quite good. The performances are absolutely incredible, the themes it touches on are relevant and important, and it's definitely a heartwarming and touching experience. It's a great exploration of family, relationships and love of all sorts, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested. And so, I give it a very good 8 out of 10. Check it out!

As someone who has worked with people with multiple different disabilities for years, situations of a sexual nature often come up and it's never easy or comfortable to deal with. People with mental disabilities especially developmental disabilities don't understand and process things the same and to them it's almost a childlike game that they want to try to understand and they feel like they are left out of so it's of they're inquisitive nature to try to figure out an experiment. So to have a movie revolve around people with developmental disabilities and sexual a sexual premise, is already something that should be handled very carefully because of the sensitive nature for everyone involved, it's no laughing matter and shouldn't be handled as such but also it can be a learning tool but doesn't have to be handled in a cold and sterile environment either. As in back in the 80s when there was a very beautiful movie to which the Name Escapes Me but it was all about a theater group comprised people with developmental disabilities mainly Down syndrome who we're not expected to succeed and ended up putting on a gigantic show of Liberace songs to critical acclaim! That's the type of movie that can make a difference and be entertaining at the same time.

This movie was deeply disturbing making my skin crawl! It's about two brothers, and the one brother obviously has Down syndrome but I missed the split-second where it was completely explained what they were saying happened to him in birth but I did hear several Times Square the other brother mentioned that he ran over his head with a car of all things! And so there's a deep-seated resentment between the two brothers. But back and forth the brother with the developmental disability is a Peeping Tom and videotapes sexual encounters between his brother and his brothers girlfriends! But what's worse is the brother without any issues developmentally actually is able to perform better knowing that his brother is watching! Now that's some real sexual deviance. His girlfriend is still married and going through a divorce her husband shows up with literally a beer can in his hand drunk as a skunk to the divorce proceedings it refuses to divorce her unless she proclaims that she cheated on him. The brother with developmental disabilities draws dirty pictures of their underage niece in a bikini. But the absolute worst thing is when they're making these Home Videos between the two brothers and the dad and they take a samurai sword and pretend to cut the dad's penis off and the dad hands them a strap-on and then they go outside to a park and the one brother drops his drawers and he's got some sort of leggings on with black strings and the other brother with developmental disabilities gets down on his knees and pretends to perform fellatio on his brother right there in the park to try to revive the strap on that was the fathers penis that he was attaching to his brother! They called it mouth-to-mouth! I was in shock! This movie is completely vile! I mean it's borderline porn! I'm really in disbelief that it's on Netflix! I thought I was sitting down to a feel good if not educational Style movie and I got none of the above. I wish there was something below 1 star. I highly recommend you avoid this movie!

I don't usually "hate" movies, but this is one of them. I hated all of the manipulation from the older brother towards his girlfriend and brother. His brother may have some kind of disability - never really explained other than having him having his head being rolled over by his brother when he (brother) backed out of his driveway. The BROTHER was the truly sick one. He seemed to have no remorse over damaging his brother so seriously. The satanic brother's girlfriend tried to be amenable throughout but she represents the standard trope of a very naïve and well... stupid woman. I hated all the characters in this film and I cannot find one redeeming quality to this show. Even the father turned out to be a sick SOB. Awful, awful. UGH!

This film manages to explore some difficult issues without being depressing or condescending.

The main character, Shonzi is developmentally delayed and he uses the sympathy this often evokes in others, as a weapon to manipulate them.

This is a challenging film to make fun, enjoyable and positive but Linas Phillips, the director and writer (who plays Shonzi), succeeds in doing so.

The film provides good insight into the challenges faced by Shonzi and those around him, but it avoids being tub thumping and over-emotional. The characters and the audience are treated as adults; sexuality and disability are explored with confidence and realism.

I tend to see films that explore "issues", as educational rather than entertaining. But this is different. It is entertaining but I also felt I had effortlessly learned something new by the end of the film.

Rainbow Time begins as a pretty lighthearted comedy with some dramatic elements. The second half relies more on drama with some minor comedic elements. The first half is more successful, but it still works overall. The characters and plot are off-beat and keep the viewer interested enough to want to see how the characters develop throughout.

The film relies heavily on the acting ability of the three leads. Luckily, all three perform excellently and play their roles almost flawlessly. Rainbow Time does not try to be something it's not - it tells a pretty simple story about some simple people with common problems. If you like any of the lead actors, give it a shot.