Directed by Colin Trevorrow
Written by Derek Connolly
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni
WANTED: Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You’ll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED.
This is the ad that gains the attention of a Seattle-based magazine. Sounds like a comedy, right?
PLOT: A reporting team from the fore-mentioned magazine travels to Ocean View, WA to find the writer of this ad. Kenneth (Duplass), a grocer clerk by day, is easy to locate but does not inspire confidence. Is he the wacko he appears to be? Darius (Plaza) wins him over and is immediately recruited to travel through time with him. Her colleagues (Johnson and Soni) use their time to find girls, both specific and nonspecific.
All four characters have distinct personalities and goals. They are likable (eventually) without being saccharin or generic. Kenneth and Darius share their reasons for wanting to time travel. The movie ends in a particularly satisfying way.
This is a small movie with small goals and small payoffs. There are a few of these every summer and most get lost in the cacophony of the big budget movies in the next screening room. Plaza and Duplass are especially engaging. Recommended for viewers with a taste for low-budget, mildly amusing, restful movies. Which is me.
Patti
Be sure to stop by http://www.pattinase.blogspot.com/ to check out Forgotten Books every Friday as well as other thoughts, comments and reviews. A collection of her stories, Monkey Justice (Snubnose Press) can be found on Amazon