The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle is one of those movies that you have to watch a second, or third, time to absorb it all. No, I'm not complimenting the movie, nor calling it confusing, though it is way too complex for its own good. In fact, it's one of those movies that needs a "First Sequence" (a la Human Centipede) so that we can at least flesh out the undeveloped characters further in the sequel.
Take the lead, Dory (played by what appears to be Joseph Gordon-Levitt's twin, Marshall Allman) who we immediately (as in about eight minutes in) find out:
A: he religious by reading the Bible while wearing a tie B: he's burned out at work: stomps on cube-partner's cell C: he has trouble with bills: he states this D: he joins a cookie-test group immediately following a new job E: he's still searching for the answer on who's up there through multiple religions
We're bounced all over the place in this poor lost soul while trying to absorb what else is happening on the screen. Such as these cookies have an unusual side-effect that most guys would have a problem with.
And that's sad. Aside from my comparison to Gordon-Levitt, Allman certainly has potential and was just fine in his role. In fact, I've already seen and enjoyed him in both TV's Prison Break and HBO's True Blood. So, I don't blame him for the over-written role here.
Skipping past what I wanted more from – if I wasn't clear: more time to flesh out the interesting character of Dory – the movie itself was enjoyable with wildly original ideas with interesting and kooky characters. And for being an "independent movie" it had remarkable special effects from the little blue "babies" to the breath taken after each cookie intake.
The synopsis is a little more complex when you're watching, but when you've reached the credits, it's pretty straightforward: (already explained) Dory and his new "pals" in a janitor service consume large quantities of "stolen" experimental and HIGHLY addictive cookies with horrifying consequences. It's an all-but take on both illegal drugs and evil-corporate America when these absolute Seattleites try to figure out what's happening to their bodies and who to go up against.
While on different planes, I can somewhat compare this to the (MUCH SUPERIOR) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in its strange takes, twists and turns. Had this Immaculate Conception concept been written by the great Charlie Kaufman, the results would have been much better. That said, this writer/director, David Russo still did a fine job. Especially with his cast call.
From Vince Vieluf who played O.C. wonderfully to Natasha Lyonne as Tracy, who's already on my "good" list when I saw her in But, I'm a Cheerleader. Heck, even the other secondary roles from Weird William (Richard Lefebvre,) Ethyl (Tania Raymonde) and Methyl (Tygh Runyan) were all fun to watch and made their roles their own.
In addition to the cast, the film was very well shot with a lot of creativity thrown in at the appropriate moments. I can see, with a little more time and budget, Russo taking a very good chunk of the Kaufman fan-base, i.e. never really mainstream, but fantastic nonetheless.
Eventually, I will have to revisit this film, but in the meantime, I look forward to more films by Russo and this cast. And it's certainly not for everybody, but that's not why I watch movies. I watch them as individual pieces and to heck if the mainstream will be drawn to them or not.
Side Note: Oh, and by the way, I was almost completely turned off in the opening by the announcement of American Express financing. Really? Personally, I wouldn't want people to know I got into bed with the Devil (Credit Cards) to get my film made. But, try and get past that, as for every terror MTV Films movie made, they still came up with the brilliant Election and hilarious Napoleon Dynamite.
Take the lead, Dory (played by what appears to be Joseph Gordon-Levitt's twin, Marshall Allman) who we immediately (as in about eight minutes in) find out:
A: he religious by reading the Bible while wearing a tie B: he's burned out at work: stomps on cube-partner's cell C: he has trouble with bills: he states this D: he joins a cookie-test group immediately following a new job E: he's still searching for the answer on who's up there through multiple religions
We're bounced all over the place in this poor lost soul while trying to absorb what else is happening on the screen. Such as these cookies have an unusual side-effect that most guys would have a problem with.
And that's sad. Aside from my comparison to Gordon-Levitt, Allman certainly has potential and was just fine in his role. In fact, I've already seen and enjoyed him in both TV's Prison Break and HBO's True Blood. So, I don't blame him for the over-written role here.
Skipping past what I wanted more from – if I wasn't clear: more time to flesh out the interesting character of Dory – the movie itself was enjoyable with wildly original ideas with interesting and kooky characters. And for being an "independent movie" it had remarkable special effects from the little blue "babies" to the breath taken after each cookie intake.
The synopsis is a little more complex when you're watching, but when you've reached the credits, it's pretty straightforward: (already explained) Dory and his new "pals" in a janitor service consume large quantities of "stolen" experimental and HIGHLY addictive cookies with horrifying consequences. It's an all-but take on both illegal drugs and evil-corporate America when these absolute Seattleites try to figure out what's happening to their bodies and who to go up against.
While on different planes, I can somewhat compare this to the (MUCH SUPERIOR) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in its strange takes, twists and turns. Had this Immaculate Conception concept been written by the great Charlie Kaufman, the results would have been much better. That said, this writer/director, David Russo still did a fine job. Especially with his cast call.
From Vince Vieluf who played O.C. wonderfully to Natasha Lyonne as Tracy, who's already on my "good" list when I saw her in But, I'm a Cheerleader. Heck, even the other secondary roles from Weird William (Richard Lefebvre,) Ethyl (Tania Raymonde) and Methyl (Tygh Runyan) were all fun to watch and made their roles their own.
In addition to the cast, the film was very well shot with a lot of creativity thrown in at the appropriate moments. I can see, with a little more time and budget, Russo taking a very good chunk of the Kaufman fan-base, i.e. never really mainstream, but fantastic nonetheless.
Eventually, I will have to revisit this film, but in the meantime, I look forward to more films by Russo and this cast. And it's certainly not for everybody, but that's not why I watch movies. I watch them as individual pieces and to heck if the mainstream will be drawn to them or not.
Side Note: Oh, and by the way, I was almost completely turned off in the opening by the announcement of American Express financing. Really? Personally, I wouldn't want people to know I got into bed with the Devil (Credit Cards) to get my film made. But, try and get past that, as for every terror MTV Films movie made, they still came up with the brilliant Election and hilarious Napoleon Dynamite.