Director:
Kevan Tucker
Studio/Production Company:
Floodgate Features
Genre:
Drama
Sub-Genre:
Comedy
Length:
Feature
Awards Won:
Best New Director, 2008 Brooklyn Internat'l Film Fest
Official Selection, International Film Fest South Africa
Website:
http://www.theunidentified.net
Score:
4/5
Inevitably, this film might be unfairly categorized in the sometimes promising, sometimes exasperating, and often critically dismissed style of filmmaking known as “mumble-core.” To be sure, the film does feature the hallmark of that style, generally well-educated, verbose white 20-somethings going on and on about the ills of the world and their relative inability to fit in with it but Kevan Tucker’s “The Unidentified” aims so much higher and winds up going so much deeper than most of those other films (“LOL”, “Dance Party USA”) that it could easily stand on its own, outside of any association with the other films with which it might draw comparisons.
Exquisitely shot by Robert Carnevale and effectively improvised by exceptionally talented newcomers “The Unidentified” deftly avoids falling into the traps that have snared dozens of similarly earnest indies that have come before. With such material, there is always a danger of becoming pretentious and/or unsympathetic but because it precisely because the population of Tucker’s film occasionally seems like they almost know how ridiculous they sound and act, that the audience is eventually won over to their side as they wind up having to eschew pretense, deal with real problems, complicated emotions and, yes, ultimately, grow up.
The film focuses on the familiar cinematic (if not real life) ups and downs of post-grad life faced by Estlin (Jay Sullivan) an idealistic, would-be political activist captivated by the spirit of protest movements of the 1960’s but stuck writing obituaries and spot pieces for a small Brooklyn newspaper not interested in being a venue for his socio-political commentaries. Thrown off balance by the sudden announcement that his partner in snarky observance of the world around them, Brooke (Lauren Shannon), is giving up on their NYC existence and moving back to Ohio, Estlin tries to thrown himself into his unsatisfying work. When he bumps into a childhood friend, Sophie (Erin Ecklund), a sort of aspiring artist with a wildly playful outlook on life, he focuses his energy on their blossoming romance. But when he discovers the dark truth beneath her sunny disposition, the relationship crumbles, leaving him further lost and confused, with only his, what he thinks to be rock solid, idealism to keep him going and he is forced to come to terms with himself, his friends, his generation and the world at large.
Improvisational films have inherent pitfalls, scenes often run on far too long and pacing is usually pretty awkward at best as directors run the risk of grasping onto beloved material that might have been better off getting edited out. While “The Unidentified” fares far better than most improvised films it still feels like it might have benefited from another cut or two, bringing its running time of 113 minutes closer to somewhere in the 90-100 minute neighborhood.
In lesser hands, the material might have easily strayed into dangerous territory, could have been painfully self-important, to the point of unintentional parody but it does not, thanks to Tucker’s sure handed control of the action and the dazzling performances of Sullivan, Shannon and Ecklund --- all of whom deserve to be working much, much more. Likewise, Tucker could really be a name to watch out for in the future, as “The Unidentified” is an extremely promising debut.
Kevan Tucker
Studio/Production Company:
Floodgate Features
Genre:
Drama
Sub-Genre:
Comedy
Length:
Feature
Awards Won:
Best New Director, 2008 Brooklyn Internat'l Film Fest
Official Selection, International Film Fest South Africa
Website:
http://www.theunidentified.net
Score:
4/5
Inevitably, this film might be unfairly categorized in the sometimes promising, sometimes exasperating, and often critically dismissed style of filmmaking known as “mumble-core.” To be sure, the film does feature the hallmark of that style, generally well-educated, verbose white 20-somethings going on and on about the ills of the world and their relative inability to fit in with it but Kevan Tucker’s “The Unidentified” aims so much higher and winds up going so much deeper than most of those other films (“LOL”, “Dance Party USA”) that it could easily stand on its own, outside of any association with the other films with which it might draw comparisons.
Exquisitely shot by Robert Carnevale and effectively improvised by exceptionally talented newcomers “The Unidentified” deftly avoids falling into the traps that have snared dozens of similarly earnest indies that have come before. With such material, there is always a danger of becoming pretentious and/or unsympathetic but because it precisely because the population of Tucker’s film occasionally seems like they almost know how ridiculous they sound and act, that the audience is eventually won over to their side as they wind up having to eschew pretense, deal with real problems, complicated emotions and, yes, ultimately, grow up.
The film focuses on the familiar cinematic (if not real life) ups and downs of post-grad life faced by Estlin (Jay Sullivan) an idealistic, would-be political activist captivated by the spirit of protest movements of the 1960’s but stuck writing obituaries and spot pieces for a small Brooklyn newspaper not interested in being a venue for his socio-political commentaries. Thrown off balance by the sudden announcement that his partner in snarky observance of the world around them, Brooke (Lauren Shannon), is giving up on their NYC existence and moving back to Ohio, Estlin tries to thrown himself into his unsatisfying work. When he bumps into a childhood friend, Sophie (Erin Ecklund), a sort of aspiring artist with a wildly playful outlook on life, he focuses his energy on their blossoming romance. But when he discovers the dark truth beneath her sunny disposition, the relationship crumbles, leaving him further lost and confused, with only his, what he thinks to be rock solid, idealism to keep him going and he is forced to come to terms with himself, his friends, his generation and the world at large.
Improvisational films have inherent pitfalls, scenes often run on far too long and pacing is usually pretty awkward at best as directors run the risk of grasping onto beloved material that might have been better off getting edited out. While “The Unidentified” fares far better than most improvised films it still feels like it might have benefited from another cut or two, bringing its running time of 113 minutes closer to somewhere in the 90-100 minute neighborhood.
In lesser hands, the material might have easily strayed into dangerous territory, could have been painfully self-important, to the point of unintentional parody but it does not, thanks to Tucker’s sure handed control of the action and the dazzling performances of Sullivan, Shannon and Ecklund --- all of whom deserve to be working much, much more. Likewise, Tucker could really be a name to watch out for in the future, as “The Unidentified” is an extremely promising debut.