At Home by Myself... with You

I really, really wanted to like this movie. The story behind it is inspiring. Indie director raises money through pocket change to make his dream feature. It's a feel good story. Unfortunately, the film is just not good. It's actually pretty bad.

It's decently photographed and the acting is competent (for what the cast had to work with) but where it really falls down is the script. Pedantic doesn't even begin to describe it. It's formulaic writing at it's absolute worst. From bad dialogue choices to boring characters, this film was several rewrites away from being ready for filming.

I think there's a lesson in this film, and it's a sad one. If you have to beg for change to make a movie -- you should make sure the movie you are making is worth it. Well many in Canada bemoan the public funding agencies, they do serve their purpose in that they are a litmus test for whether or not a project has any appeal. At Home By Myself with You simply does not.

The longer I watched the movie the more I found myself enjoying it and rooting for Romy to overcome her fears and to join the outside world. The movie goes on an interesting journey with a neat beginning that doesn't delve too much on Romy's history. We know that she had some incidents that left her emotionally scarred and unable to go outside for fear of something catastrophic happening.

Since the movie mostly takes place in Romy's apartment it was interesting to see how the scenes would pan out and it worked for the most part. I was more engaged in Romy and her problems and her interactions with the other characters to get distracted by the apartment setting.

The love angle did seem a little rushed and initially it didn't seem that Guy and Romy looked good together but I have to make some allowances. Without any romantic angle the movie probably would be a lot shorter.

The acting is done well by the whole cast involved, the comedy and jokes are funny and I liked the ending so what more can you ask for? It's a good light hearted affair that's definitely worth watching. It's best enjoyed with a cup of hot chocolate and a cookie, and your sweetheart nearby!

Agoriphobic Romy Scott (Kristin Booth) has fears of lobsters, opening boxes, kissing, and storms after each one killed a loved one. She survives in her apartment for the last six years with the help of best friend Erin, modern technology, and delivery guy Sam. Her loving neighbor tricks her into stepping out of her apartment only to die in her arms. This reinforcement of her fears is alleviated with the arrival of a scruffy nomadic Guy who is there to clean out his late great-aunt's apartment.

This is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl movie except he's there to save her in this one. Booth is a terrific MPDG. The guy could be hunkier but he has a sarcastic nerd charms. It's got a meet-cute and it's a fine rom-com. A higher budget could help with the low budget grunge. It's a micro-budget Canadian indie and Booth really helps sells it.

I saw this at VIFF - a friend told me about it and luckily they had added another screening so I was able to see it. And I loved it! I can't believe they made such a wonderful film for so little money. It just goes to prove that where there's a will, there's a way! I thought the acting was superb. Kristin Booth played the phobias so genuinely and somehow managed to balance a lightness with this serious subject, and then could make me laugh out loud. And I can't remember when a romantic comedy has done that - most of the time they lean heavily toward romantic and forget about the comedy part and this film has both. And Aaron Abrams was fantastic, too. I'm pretty sure every woman who sees this film will fall just a little bit in love with him. Had this film been made with more money it probably would have lost the thing that makes it so special - its heart. I hope this film makes it to theatres or at least DVD - I want to see it again and next time I'm bringing all my girlfriends!

I was pleasantly surprised by this little comedy about a woman so taken in by various phobias she hasn't left her apartment in six years. While the entire film is set in her apartment, it doesn't get claustrophobic due to a cast of interesting characters who visit, including a neighbour, the UPS guy and an amorous janitor.

The mood is established right at the beginning with a light animated sequence explaining the origin of Romy's fears. It sets the tone perfectly for the remainder of the film. Aaron Abrams is fabulous as the new neighbour who cares nothing for her or her troubles until he discovers she is a travel agent, and can be of use to him. And Kristen Booth has the acting chops to perform slightly exaggerated comedy, demanded by the material, without ever hitting the slapstick threshold--a feat in itself. The va-et-vient between Booth and Abrams is as well-written and entertaining as the chemistry between them is obvious.

When it was over I discovered that I had been totally charmed by this film and immediately added it to my "to buy" list (I watched a rental) so that I can re-watch at will.