"Cold Weather"...a movie review

Cold Weather

Written/Directed by Aaron Katz.

It's funny... bigger really does not always mean better.

In this era of "packaged" movies, of studio executives' widely-held belief that movies are successful when they adhere to a formula (Star+Explosions+Sex, or Tween Star+Dumbed-Down-Family-Friendly-Plot, or Star+Star+Star+Funny Supporting Star), movies seem to be less and less satisfying. As an avid movie lover who is also pretty easy to please, I have noticed a widening differential in my love-it/hate-it ratio when I leave theaters. More and more often, movies that, on paper, should NOT fail (a la Tim Burton directing Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter in "Alice In Wonderland") somehow have been failing more and more often. And even if your staunch Hollywood insider would vow that this and other movies are not economic failures, I counter by saying that the amount of money these stories COULD have made if they had not been f'ed up by today's sad studio standards would have been exponentially better.

Where does one turn in these times? Well, why not the films that are not obligated to follow such ridiculous formulas? Why not turn to movies that are made because people have stories to tell and love what they do? Among others that have previously been mentioned on Nate's Verbal Hootenanny, I enjoy the movies released at the Laemmle Sunset 5 in West Hollywood. They specialize in bringing independent and foreign films to Los Angeles, as well as hosting special events and film festivals.

This week's diamond-in-the-rough was Cold Weather. Written and directed by Aaron Katz, CW is a quirky story about a chronic underachiever, Doug, who happens to have only one mostly unfulfilled talent: detective work. This movie is a slow burn- perhaps the first 25% is exposition and character introduction at a snail's pace. For most, this would be torture- BUT, Katz keeps this initial quarter of the movie interesting, lighthearted and surprisingly fun if not also charmingly odd.

Then, BAM, before you know it, Katz whirls you into a small scale Sherlock Holmes-esque thriller(ish). The work of lead actors Cris Lankenau (Doug) and Triest Kelly Dunn (his sister Gina), as well as Katz, stands out. You've seen it before- brother and sister get into trouble and try to save the day. Because Katz invested us so much in the innocence of these characters at the beginning, the tension mounts as Doug and Gina become increasingly entangled in the search for Rachel, Doug's missing ex-girlfriend. Indeed, as the search becomes more and more dangerous, one gets the dreaded impression that these kids are way in over their head. One can almost see the proverbial shit fly towards the fan. Aided by a simple score, this movie picks up steam and becomes quite the effective thriller while still maintaining its quirky humor. Reminiscent of Fargo in some respects, many of the best films of any genre (be they thrillers, horror, or sci-fi flicks) are the stories that are more about people than just the plot.

If I had one criticism, it would be that I am not very happy with the abrupt ending. Too many movies seem to be employing this tactic lately, and I believe the only way to make an abrupt ending work is when The All-Important Viewer absolutely needs it to stop just so he/she can breathe. In CW, I got the impression that Katz felt he had accomplished his mission and simply called it a day, when in fact I would have liked to see just about 3-5 minutes more of resolution for those left standing at this film's conclusion.

All in all, Cold Weather manages to be an amusing and welcome break from the same ol' crap that we are being spoon fed these days (oh, I'm sorry, you LIKED No Strings Attached?). If you're in the mood for an offbeat, quirky, character-driven mystery, Cold Weather should make you happy.