Maine's license plates proclaim the state "Vacationland." The characters in Vacationland, though, are mostly trying to flee their little slice of paradise in favor of anything that might be better than the shithole that is their lives in mid-1980's Bangor, Maine. The central character, Joe, is a high school senior aiming for art school at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and looking to escape the orbit of his pathetic drunken single mom and her boyfriends-du-jour. His best friend is Andrew, a foo-ball jock locked into a miserable dating relationship with the head cheerleader. Then comes Victor, an aging artist who needs some live-in help, as well as a model for a few last figure studies, in his final days.
Trouble is, I neither liked nor believed any of the characters, nor were most of the situations plausibly presented. The sequence of scenes often came off as an incoherent jumble. Certainly far from the worst film in the festival, but a real disappointment all the same.
Vacationland, dir. Todd Verow, 2006 USA, 104 min.
Technorati tags: Frameline30, LGBT Film, Vacationland
I'll aggree with you that the plot was jumbled at times, and the sequence of events wasn't always clear. What I wont agree with you on, however is the performance of the actors in the film. I felt they gave very believable performances, and the film ended with you haven taken a genuine interest in their story. And to clarify, I'm only referring to the actors other than the lead, because I don't feel it is appropriate for me to comment about my own performance in the film. I'm interested to hear a more detailed review of the film and a little about what you liked or disliked about each character. It's always helpful to have as much feedback as possible when you are a young, inexperienced actor such as myself.
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