I was turned on to this flick during a visit to Las Vegas (where it was produced). Attracted to off-beat film projects, I attended the screening at CineVegas in 2000 with a local friend of mine and was pleasantly surprised, although understood the movie was still a work-in-progress. Although the project was produced on a shoestring budget, I was fascinated by its creativity and ability to keep my attention and capture my imagination even though the production quality was crude. But, as a low-budget labor-of-love endeavor should be (shot for under $2,000), that crudeness added to its character. Friends of mine who live in Vegas told me about a final release of the movie on DVD in March 2002. I bought a copy (at Tower Records in Vegas, but I believe its also on sale at Borders Books, too). The DVD contained the full director's cut with finishing touches that solved most of the exposition problems that I experienced at the CineVegas screening. This DVD release took the movie to a new level, adding extreme but amusing narration along with some highly creative editing. I won't devulge the story but it's basically about a young man with a camcorder who documents on video his journey for his estranged father. The old man is wanted by the FBI for murder and what the young filmmaker exposes in a patchwork of experiences from his journey is daring and a reflection of American society. The movie is innovative and I consider it worth watching because it makes you think as much as it entertains. It's not perfect filmmaking but it's worthwhile filmmaking and represents the start of bigger and bolder projects for its creators. At once a curious send up of adventuresome movie-making and an insightful study of American culture, it also demonstrates that a good art house flick can come out of Vegas of all places. I am curious what the producers of Clover's Movie do next.
