I can work to find the bright side of any situation, so my girlfriend's
24-hours of sleeplessness on Thursday (was it inspired by concluding
"Fight Club" or just her buyer's remorse on skipping a B1G1 deal at Rue
21?) allowed me to finally get comfortable enough to explore a feature
about captivity, mental illness, and Teddy Ruxpin, "Brigsby Bear".
James Mitchum has been growing up in a post apocalyptic world where VHS
is the only thing that allows him to escape the isolation. Every week, a
new video is delivered to the bunker. It is the only TV show anyone
born after the fall of man knows. At least that is how it was for James.
Once Ted and April Mitchum are captured for abducting him as an infant,
he is thrown into a world where nothing that he grew up knowing
actually exists.
"Brigsby Bear Adventures" was a show produced and developed by Ted to
serve as educational programming for his pseudo son, so in order to keep
up the illusion of "Fallout: New Salt Lake", James was the only person
to ever watch the show. It is the only thing James is interested in, but
after his real father, Greg, takes him to see a movie, he discovers
there is a way to still hold on to the world he knew, or at least grow
beyond it. He is going to conclude the Brigsby story by writing and
producing his own feature film.
Being James's only passion, people who try and get to know him cannot
help but be mesmerized by his tales of a Chuck E. Cheese robot battling a
bearded, cackling sun. His sister Aubrey's friends are all in on making
this film and aspiring director Spencer uploading the old tapes to
Youtube, the kidnap kid's popularity only grows. With some sympathetic
former actors in the police department having access to the show's
props, the only things that could possibly stop the film from wrapping
up are his real parent's need for him to identify with them and his
Google search history that raises a lot of red flags at Homeland
Security.
Practical effects are a lost art. If their was ever a greater reason to destroy the Patriot Act, I would like to hear it.
At one hour and 37 minutes, "Brigsby Bear" is a work of genius. You get
this convoluted story on top of actual moments of dealing with the
trauma of being throw into a world that you have never known. The story
is an inspiring and great tale about the need for compassion and
understanding.
There are still some nits to pick. Imagining this film with a budget is
something you cannot help but do. The feature does not offer anything in
exceptional in terms of primary cast and direction. I think it is a bit
too meta to direct the film like the characters directing their own
film.
The lead and primary writer Kyle Mooney displays passion well, but the
characters who turn out to be his adversaries are too restrained.
Perhaps they could have been exaggerated in their efforts to make James
face reality, but with Greg Kinnear, Mark Hamill, and all the adolescent
characters shine when they get their chance, director Dave McCary's
approach may have been appropriate.
With concise direction and writing, it is a shame that "Brigsby Bear"
did not get a wider release. It is funny and clever and has a message
that I think everyone could benefit from. The actors you came to see
deliver and any one from Generation X to Millenials can appreciate the
celebration of not quite ready for PBS productions.
My only other wish is that it was released eight years earlier when I started trying to promote "Main Event of the Dead" my low-budget, pro-wrestling themed zom-com. Feel free to request a treatment at russthebus07@gmail.com. It may have let more of my acquaintances giving my weird and passionate self a chance.
Lonely Island, are you interested in another sub $7 million project?
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http://www.brigsbybear.jp/
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