Just what I expected

An Exercise In Nonsense

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

I watched Prince Avalanche last night and thought – A bare production doesn't equate to a bare narrative. We open in a Texas State Park where many of its trees are missing due to a recent wildfire. Long takes with a hand-held and sometimes stationary camera follow two road workers. Alvin (Paul Rudd) and Lance (Emile Hirsch) traverse the barren landscape not only trying to repair the park's roads, but also trying desperately to make an emotional connection with the outside world and each other. The bareness in production aspects; hand-held cameras, long takes, low- key score, one set location, and especially the small cast only accentuate Alvin and Lance's struggle. In such a bare and intimate mis-en-scene, the complexities of their insecurities are exposed and deeply felt. Director and Writer David Gordon Green captures a variegated palette that spans the ranges of human feeling. In Prince Avalanche scenes of human frailty and desperation harmonize with moments of ridiculous comedy that then transcend to moments of philosophical wonder.

"Prince Avalanche" is a great cinema experience for just about everyone. It begins as the ultimate road movie (literally, a pair of mismatched Texans spend their summer painting roads) but quickly takes a detour into a world of visual poetry, provocative characterizations and deep introspection. And all the while it manages to maintain a sense of brainless comedy that the storyline & DVD cover might lead us to expect.In spite of its grand visual setting in the majesty & desolation of fire-ravaged Texas, this is a very minimalistic production with just 2 main characters, 2 supporting characters and 10 or 20 miles of desolate Texas roads in the aftermath of the 1987 wildfires (it was actually filmed at the site of the 2012 Batstrop County fire). Being set in the 80s adds to the comedy & charm of this quirky flick. Be prepared to see Paul Rudd sporting a very "Magmum P.I." moustache and white tube socks with those 3 funky colored stripes at the top.There aren't a lot of big gags but instead the humor comes from the low-key bizarre dialogues between our 2 leads, "Alvin" (Paul Rudd) who is the self appointed leader because he's the self-proclaimed smarter of the two, and "Lance" (Emile Hirsch) who isn't the brightest doorknob. The laughs hinge on the weirdness of their discussions much like the hilariously strange banter between John Travolta & Samuel L. Jackson in "Pulp Fiction".In all, "Prince Avalanche" is an excellent show of what the French philosophers might call "La Comedy Humaine" with its poignant look at human nature. And at the same time the movie isn't so heady that it's above an occasional brainless laugh, like having the two fight & chase each other through the forest with axes.I wanted to mention 2 trivial tidbits in case you're interested in stuff like this: (1) The filmmakers note that no animals were harmed, so the occasional scenes of roadkill, fishing and what looked like a small skinned monkey for dinner were apparently props (this is good to know as a lot of indie films slip under the AHA radar and use real animals to save money on special effects), and (2) the excellent performance by supporting actress Joyce Payne (the woman in the ruins) was actually an unscripted addition to the film when they met Joyce, an actual ex-resident, while filming. As you will see, her character becomes pivotal to the story & meaning of the film, reminding us that great moments in cinema do often happen by accident."Prince Avalanche" is rated R which surprised me since there is no nudity, not much profanity and no violence. There are 1 or 2 dialogues about sexual situations which might get a bit racy for the kiddies, but other than that, this is a tame film. I highly recommend it to fans of Jim Jarmusch ("Down By Law", "Coffee & Cigarettes") and Wim Wenders ("Million Dollar Hotel", "Lisbon Story", "Alice in the Cities").

Some sort of return to form for David Gordon Green after the not even close to successful venture into studio comedy hackery with Your Highness and The Sitter. Two men are painting yellow traffic lines after a forrest fire in 1988 and dealing with their inner demons and immaturity. I apologize for such a simplistic and tedious sounding description of the premise, but the film is funny, grounded and very entertaining. Rudd and Hirsch are in top form here, but it's Green who makes this simple, small story worth a watch. Quickly shot in 16 days, it's well photographed and Green never lets this lapse into an indulgent, shapeless mess. It's a shame a film like this can barely find distribution and be dumped with little fanfare in a couple of theaters and VOD day and date.

I took this DVD out from my library so I can at least say I didn't waste any money on it's purchase(other than my taxes). Two men in the Texas back country get jobs painting stripes on a road. That's about as exciting as it gets. What we're told on the cover is that two men of very different backgrounds and sensibilities bond in this job. What I saw were two fairly unlikable guys who share some misery with each other. There's no journey of self-discovery, no real humor other than a strange drunken truck driver that appears a few times during the film. The only bonding I could see was done with a large helping of alcohol along with a pointless destruction of a large portion of their equipment (yet it all gets packed neatly back in the jeep at the end??). Just a lot of empty, meandering dialogue as you would expect from two people with nothing in common. I was really hoping that at least someone would say a few witty things but it just drifts off to nothing, leaving us stranded as viewers in the wilderness.