There's No Fish Food in Heaven

Obviously the film is supposed to be a whimsical romantic comedy - with a dark edge to it. Unfortunately, it has some basic flaws. The plot moves along at a fairly slow pace. The main characters are not that interesting. It doesn't really rise above the level of "offbeat" or "quirky". The "story arc" is predictable after awhile. And, most importantly, It just wasn't that romantic, funny, or original.

I rented it (under the title, "Life in the Fast Lane") mainly because Fairuza Balk is in it. I wish she had a better story and script to work with. The film is mediocre at best.

Life in the fast lane or there's no fish food in heaven or whatever the hell you call it is about a frustrated artist Mona( Fairuza Balk). She has this boyfriend Jeff( Noah Taylor) who she has known forever and she doesn't really appreciate him. Suddenly Mona thinks she's going crazy because whenever she draws something, her painting really comes true. Suddenly she starts seeing this stranger who she cannot resist and has sex with him whenever she gets the chance too. Jeff wants to get Mona's attention again, so he puts himself in a box in front of Mona's doorstep. When Mona tries to open the box, she accidently stabs Jeff in the head and kills him. Now the spirit of Jeff follows Mona around everywhere and won't leave her alone unless she can find his body again. This wasn't really funny although it is considered a comedy, the only reason i even rented this movie was because of Fairuza Balk who I am in love with. I would give Life In The Fast Lane 5/10

The IMDB plot summary erroneously makes it sound like it is Noah Taylor's movie, when Fairuza Balk is the central character. It is unbelievable how such a cast of established actors could have been in such an amateurish, pointless, non-movie. Balk breaks up with Boyfriend Taylor, sleeps with the Devil (I guess - played by Dempsey), and accidentally kills Taylor -- who follows her about for the rest of the movie as a ghost. May be the worst movie I have ever seen.

Mona (Fairuza Balk) is a young artist who lives with her pregnant cousin (Debi Mazar), works at a pet store (run by Téa Leoni) and she's recently realized that sweet boyfriend Jeff (Noah Taylor) feels more like a brother than a lover. The lines between reality and fantasy begin to blur when Mona encounters a sexy stranger (Patrick Dempsey) who may be the devil himself - and her lust for this man directly results in Jeff's death. So what's worse than accidentally murdering your boyfriend? Being the only one who can see his ghost.

I can't help but wonder what all of the people who wrote bad reviews expected to see. This is one of those movies like "My Boyfriend's Back" or a John Waters opus where the characters don't function in a normal semblance of reality - they're all one-note and their actions/reactions are often absurd. And on top of that, it's low-budget fantasy, so some of the FX (as well as Debi Mazar's wig) are somewhat lacking... but that sorta adds to the fun.

The story juts along at its own pace and in its own direction, and I can't say that I ever anticipated what was coming next - though the ending was a little cliché (not that I could think of a more suitable one). Balk is likable as always as the leading lady and Taylor is charming as her dead weight. Dempsey was well-cast but he only appears in a few scenes and doesn't utter a single syllable. And renowned scene-stealer Jeffrey Jones also deserves mention for his supporting role as a minister. Unfortunately, Leoni plays it pretty broad and Mazar was uncharacteristically restrained (actually it feels like they should've switched parts).

"Life in the Fast Lane" was cute, it held my interest throughout and made me chuckle quite a few times. I couldn't really ask for more from such a dopey little comedy... except for maybe a better title ("There's No Fish Food in Heaven" wasn't much better, but at least it made sense for the film).

Noah was very good in this also. He brings new life to whatever role he's given, and although he usually plays the melancholy dramatic lover or boy next door, he enjoys playing some more lighthearted comedic roles. I think he's fantastic in this, and was interested that he also joined up with Fairuza in Almost Famous. I adore him in this role, even though this movie sometimes left a little to be desired here. A little off the edge or over the top, it's got some good qualities to it, and some good lines. Some of the plot is unrealistic, and a little sad--just a bit dark. But as a Noah Taylor fan, I definitely enjoyed it.