Bloglander

So the guy that made This Is Spinal Tap is back with a syrupy little coming of age story that, while not universally adored, was certainly loved by our friend Ed Symkus. He loved it so much he even got into a schoolyard tussle with a critic who made fun of it. Which makes us wonder, if you love it so much, why don't you marry it?!? Here's a snippet:

Have you ever seen a movie with a friend, then afterward had an argument about it that almost led to fisticuffs?

There I was, with a fellow critic, one of us happy, one close to angry about frittering away 90 minutes of his life (the monetary and tertiary compensation of being a film critic notwithstanding).

“It was full of anachronisms,” said one of us. “That music wouldn’t have been playing in 1963.”

“The music worked perfectly,” said the other. “It set the mood and helped tell the story. So what if ‘A Teenager in Love’ and ‘Walk Don’t Run’ and ‘Rebel Rouser’ weren’t from that year?”

“There was too much repetition in flashbacks. It was just a gimmick to stretch out the film,” said the one.

“It was a really clever nod to Rashomon, ...” 

Can't imagine a review getting more praiseful than name-dropping Akira Kurosawa's classic? Read on.