On Friday night October 15th, a friend and I went to the Austin Film Festival screening of Open House. I'd read that it was a no-budget musical, and I wasn't expecting a lot. What I saw was clearly made on the cheap. But it was also funny, weird, and totally fresh.
The movie starts with a clever montage of that suburban ritual-the placing of open house flags and signs. Most of the main characters are introduced here. We see real estate agent Barry(Anthony Rapp) set up an open house. Yes, there are finger sandwiches. A couple(James Duval and Kellie Martin) argue over the home listing while in bed. Dave(Jerry Doyle)robs a jewelry store, then gets stuck when his junky car won't start.A pair of dubious cops(Robert Peters and Hedy Burress) play slap and tickle while investigating the jewelry store.
All these characters collide at Barry's open house. It becomes clear that nobody is who they seem. I could never predict what was going to happen next. The craziness, lies, and musical numbers spill over into other houses. We meet drunken real estate agent Marjorie(Sally Kellerman), hilarious as she shamelessly flirts while offering home shoppers drinks.
"Open House" is like "Mad Mad Mad MAd World" meets "Rent" All the characters get cool musical numbers and funny one liners, even as their deep, personal flaws/secrets are revealed. Writers Mirvish and Maddox keep the story zipping around corners you won't see coming, and they also score with some nice songs.
"Sellin' A Dream," Kellerman's duet with Doyle, even made me a little teary eyed. The film has some low budget problems( the sound mix was iffy),but I liked it anyway. It's not for everyone,but if want something that defies convention and categories, check this one out.
The movie starts with a clever montage of that suburban ritual-the placing of open house flags and signs. Most of the main characters are introduced here. We see real estate agent Barry(Anthony Rapp) set up an open house. Yes, there are finger sandwiches. A couple(James Duval and Kellie Martin) argue over the home listing while in bed. Dave(Jerry Doyle)robs a jewelry store, then gets stuck when his junky car won't start.A pair of dubious cops(Robert Peters and Hedy Burress) play slap and tickle while investigating the jewelry store.
All these characters collide at Barry's open house. It becomes clear that nobody is who they seem. I could never predict what was going to happen next. The craziness, lies, and musical numbers spill over into other houses. We meet drunken real estate agent Marjorie(Sally Kellerman), hilarious as she shamelessly flirts while offering home shoppers drinks.
"Open House" is like "Mad Mad Mad MAd World" meets "Rent" All the characters get cool musical numbers and funny one liners, even as their deep, personal flaws/secrets are revealed. Writers Mirvish and Maddox keep the story zipping around corners you won't see coming, and they also score with some nice songs.
"Sellin' A Dream," Kellerman's duet with Doyle, even made me a little teary eyed. The film has some low budget problems( the sound mix was iffy),but I liked it anyway. It's not for everyone,but if want something that defies convention and categories, check this one out.