The Go-Getter (2007)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Martin Hynes

Writer (WGA):

Martin Hynes (written by)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Life doesn't come with a roadmap.

Plot:

When his mother dies, a teenager takes a road-trip in a stolen car to find his long-lost brother. Along the way he discovers a profound connection with the car-owner and with himself as well. |

Plot Keywords:

Stolen Car | Road Trip | Hypen In Title | Pottery | Motel Room

US TV Schedule:

Fri. July 24	2:30 PM	SHOW
Mon. July 27	2:00 PM	SHOW

Cast

Lou Taylor Pucci	...	Mercer
Zooey Deschanel	...	Kate
Jena Malone	...	Joely
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Giuseppe Andrews	...	Stock Boy
Jon 'Corn Mo' Cunningham	...	Drummer
Kathleen M. Darcy	...	J's Mom
John Anthony Delgado	...	Helpful Guy
Bill Duke	...	Liquor Supply
Colin Fickes	...	Cousin Buddy
Allison Flashman	...	Stand-in
Jsu Garcia	...	Arlen
Judy Greer	...	Better Than Toast
Saul Huezo	...	Valet (as Saúl Huezo)
Marissa Ingrasci	...	Laurel
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Sergio Leone
Vivianne Nacif	...	Voices (voice)
Nick Offerman	...	Nick the Potter
Paul Palo	...	Old Man
Michael Patterson-Crohn	...	Supporting
William Lee Scott	...	Rid
Eliska Sursova	...	Candy Striper
Maura Tierney	...	Hal's Pets
M. Ward	...	J
Sita Young	...	Colder

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some sexual content and drug use.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Et Cetera Films

Trivia:

The beach scene at California was filmed in Oregon.

Quotes:

Mercer: [First lines] I always had a problem with Huckleberry Finn. I mean, I liked the story, I read it, but the river... it made me feel stuck.

Movie Connections:

References Bande à part (1964)

Soundtrack:

Golden Grahams

Road movie meets first love, a sweet delight

I attended the world premiere of "The Go-Getter" at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. I'm not quite sure why, but this year's lineup seems to be heavy on heavy. I like a dark, moody melodrama as much as anybody, but whatever happened to the good old-fashioned road movie? I found the answer with "The Go-Getter." This film is all that and more. One part sweet love story, one part romantic comedy, and one part coming-of-age tale, "The Go-Getter" takes it all on the road and drives home a winning combination that will leave you smiling.

Lou Taylor Pucci (Mercer) is a good kid, but one day he decides to chuck his bike and steal a car. I don't like to post spoilers, so I won't divulge more details other than to say that the trip on which he embarks will take him on a journey that would make "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" blush.

Like any good road movie, he encounters one motley crew after another, a cast of characters all of whom get him just one step closer to the goal he seeks. But like a treasure hunt whose map takes him to places enticing enough to have him abandon his quest, he needs to keep his wandering eye on the prize. And oh, the temptresses who cause that eye to wander.

Jena Malone is Joely, a sultry vixen (quite the change for Ms. Malone) who is determined to pop Mercer's cherry. What a breath of fresh air to see this versatile young actress take on such an empowering role. Women's Lib ain't over yet. Zooey Deschanel is Kate. It's her car he stole. And she is determined to get it back -- or is she? The "indie darling" gets her chance to shine here, and the tension that builds towards a possible reunion of car and owner holds this story together like a rope ties down a trunk when the lock is broken. We're never quite sure if it'll hold.

And Lou Taylor Pucci has never been better in his role as the determined yet naive youth whose trusting nature and sense of wonder left me wanting to roll back the years to a time when everything was fresh and new. Pucci's sense of comedic timing and natural delivery is second to none, and while some of his dialog was indeed improvised, I was shocked to learn that the scenes which felt the most unscripted were, in fact, from the pen of writer/director Martin Hynes.

In the Q&A after the screening here, I was fascinated to hear that a deliberate attempt was made to cast against type. As each of the three leads has a rabid following, Hynes' script was meant to give each actor's fan base something they had never seen before: Malone as Woman, Deschanel as glamour girl, and Pucci as, well, he got his hair cut, anyway. Hope and Crosby must be smiling at this winning team.

M. Ward wrote the score, with original songs that left me wanting more. Licensing source material is pricey for an indie, but who needs hit singles when you have someone as talented as this brilliant composer? What a coup to bring him into this project. Byron Shah shot two films here at Sundance, "An American Crime" (which I saw as well) and "The Go-Getter." That alone says a lot about his eye for capturing this kind of character-driven story so well. Between Shah's photography, David Birdsell's editing, and Hynes' talent for allowing his actors to tell the story, "The Go-Getter" never wanders into pretentious indie territory. It stays accessible, which is why audiences will embrace this film wholeheartedly.

"The Go-Getter" gets it right. It's warm and funny and sweet, and at this festival of doom and gloom, what a joy it was to travel down this road.