Dealin With Idiots

Hilarious Improv work
Jeff Garlin's newest film, "Dealin' With Idiots" is a hilarious, improvised look at crazy parents. When Max decides he wants to research the parents on his kid's little league team, he gets way more than he was interested in. We get to hear Coach Jimbo (Bob Odenkirk) rant about the brother that stole the girl of his dreams, see Coach Ted (JB Smoove) give a tour of his Compound, and a host of other nuts do nutty things. I saw Jeff do a Q&A after this premiered at the amazing Music Box in Chicago and he talked about how the entire movie was improvised. He and his co-writer Peter Murrieta were the only 2 that saw the brief script. There is some hilarious improv work in the film and the actors and actresses are all at the top of their game. This movie is a blast and you should watch it rather than some other crappy movie.
High Expectations
First, let me say that I LOVE Jeff Garlin. I am a huge Curb Your Enthusiasm fan. I heard him on the NPR show, Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me! over the weekend and promptly rented the film because I couldn't wait to see it. It was timely because my husband had just had a 'difference of opinion' with some insane soccer parents from our 10 year old's team and we thought this film would bring comic relief. Perhaps our expectations were too high, but we thought it fell a bit flat. The premise is funny, Jeff Garlin is funny, the cast is amazingly funny and talented, but somehow, all together, it didn't quite gel in our opinion. We fell asleep about 45 minutes into it. The next day we finished it because we had paid $6.99 to rent it, and our opinion wasn't any different. Don't get me wrong, there are many funny moments. Overall I would recommend waiting until it is free to Prime members; just my opinion.

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Dealing With A Winner!
A hilarious look at our times. The perfect cast doing a perfect job. Another winner from Jeff Garlin. Each time I watch Dealing With Idiots, I find new insights and new reasons to laugh.
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Gimme the Loot

Likable Lead Performances Sell This Modestly Scaled Indie Comedy: Slight On Plot, But Appealing Nevertheless
Adam Leon's "Gimme The Loot" doesn't have an expansive plot or lofty ambitions, and that's probably a good thing. It really doesn't need them. This is a small slice of life comedy that seeks to be a raucous entertainment about two graffiti street artists looking to make their mark on the world. In order to pull off the ultimate "bomb," they've got to raise some quick cash through any means necessary. And their largely illegal misadventures fuel confrontations, near romances, multiple acts of larceny, and lots of profane banter. Newcomers Ty Hickson (Malcolm) and Tashiana Washington (Sofia) play the leads with much energy, bravado, and swagger. But in the quieter moments, the sweetness of their friendship lies at the heart of the movie. Let's be honest. These two get into non-stop illegal mischief and still manage to be likable! That's a real accomplishment to Leon's screenplay (he was the movie's writer and director). It makes these teens seem refreshingly real. For the...
Excellent and entertaining indie!
Had been hearing about this film for over a year. Finally saw it when it had a limited release here in Washington, DC and was blown away.

Had to return to the theater a few nights later to see it again. The writing, directing, cinematography and acting were all first rate! It had a loose, informal, shaggy dog tale quality that was relaxed, entertaining...and deceptive. A second viewing made it quite clear how much thought, planning and care had gone into working out every detail to make it seem improvisational when it actually wasn't.

Definitely NOT a crime drama. To categorize it, thus would be a mistake.

It is funny, adept, charming and filled with subtle well-observed behavior that make it an enjoyable character study and an EXCELLENT DATE MOVIE or film to watch with a bunch of friends. Soundtrack was an added, and astute bonus, that fortunately avoided the obvious cliche's.
Gimme a Break
Although the 2012 Seattle International Film Festival catalog calls this "a charming crowd pleaser," this crowd member wasn't charmed. It is listed as a Crime/Drama, but it was more a comedy of errors! (This review was first posted on JayFlix.net May 14, 2012.)

A pair of two-bit chiselers fancy themselves graffiti artists (using stolen paint), but by morning other taggers spray paint over their artwork. BTW this is an Alpha-male method of "marking territory." If you doubt it, ask a gang member to paint OVER a tag left by the gang leader. It will never happen! This behavior is not limited to tomcats, dogs, wolves or coyotes, it's an instinctive human one, too. Does anyone remember "Kilroy Was Here" in WWII? (Ask your grandparents!)

In this lame little endeavor, our three principals are:
* Ty Hickson ("Killer") as an inept drug dealer, would-be lover, out-tagged tagger and general loser. I couldn't find anything about this guy to root for. He spends most of...
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