Garden Party (2008)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Jason Freeland

Writer:

Jason Freeland (writer)

Release Date:

11 July 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Come with a Dream. Leave with a Story.

Plot:

Are you young, sexually confused, just trying to get by? Do you sing, dance or possess some other talent...

Plot Keywords:

Realtor | Los Angeles California | Drug Dealer | Independent Film

Cast

Vinessa Shaw	...	Sally St. Claire
Willa Holland	...	April
Richard Gunn	...	Todd
Patrick Fischler	...	Anthony
Fiona Dourif	...	Becky
Erik Smith	...	Sammy (as Erik Scott Smith)
Alexander Cendese	...	Nathan (as Alex Cendese)
Ross Patterson	...	Joey Zane
Jordan Havard	...	Wayne
Christopher Allport	...	Davey Diamond
Jeff Newman	...	Carlos
Tierra Abbott	...	Lana
Lisa Arturo	...	April's Mother
Erik Bragg	...	Dirk
Alesha Rucci	...	Adriana (as Alesha Clarke)

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Lookout Films

Soundtrack:

I Close My Eyes

Five people with different dreams struggle with day to day life in Los Angeles

I liked Crash. I thought the interweaving story lines was subtle enough to not make me second guess any of the writing. The issues dealing with race and class differences was very compelling and brought me to a different level when I left the movie theater.

I do not like Garden Party. Here we have yet another film about people living or moving to LA to try and follow their dreams. The problem with stories like this is the subject matter itself. The film has a smart premise, but I simply did not care for any of the characters.

That being said, Garden Party is not a total failure. While the story lines that do join together are forced and many times just don't feel genuine in the least bit. But we do have small scenes of character interactions that are quirky, funny, and charming.

The movie portrays LA a little differently than people see it as on the outside. Unfortunately for LA, the more real perception of the city isn't very pretty. And when a movie comes along trying to push that specific point, it better do it with some characters we want to care about.

In the end, Garden Party is the story of how we struggle to live our lives, and how not everything is golden and happy on the outside. You might connect with some of the terribly stereotyped characters, but in truth the writing doesn't lend itself to a strong character development, the acting as a whole is sub par, and the story simply not believable. I didn't buy into it, but you might.