Eden Court (2008) User Reviews

In the vein of "what about everyone else"

[RobotStephe · 8/10 · 3 March 2008]

I had the pleasure of seeing this at a showing in Chicago, and thoroughly enjoyed Tom Lennon in this departure from the typical Reno-911 hijinks. Although a huge fan of his in that (Reno-911) and The State, I was intrigued by the idea of him not playing a "wacky" guy, and instead, a real person.

After the first 1/2 hour or so - I completely forgot I was watching "Tom Lennon" - and instead was totally sucked into the world. The characters were just outrageous enough to be memorable, the situation just real enough to make me wonder if it could be me, and the whole thing just had this great pace. Overall, after watching the movie, you kinda realize, "Hey, maybe things aren't so bad for me." Sometimes, adapted plays (which serves as the source material here) have the cliché of "feeling" like a play that was moved to the screen (State and Main) - however, this had a completely different pace than the stage play - and I think the story benefited from the change of pace. The tragically-comic story of a "might've been" who decides he's had enough and tries to do something may be a stalwart of entertainment - but the REALITY of the situation is what's always ignored. Here, the REALITY hits you and Schroeder (Lennon) in the face, guts and a little in the back.

A few laugh-out-loud moments in this were truly unexpected - and helped with the storytelling. All in all, it wasn't flashy, it wasn't over the top, it was honest. Honest storytelling from an honest story - the scoring, the movement, the pacing - all contributed to an entirely entertaining event. My one complaint - more Stephanie Weir - she's hilarious, and we need to see more from her!

Fantastic!

[steev-5 · 8/10 · 3 March 2008]

I caught Eden Court in Chicago last year at the premiere and I thought it was great. Leuer did a great job directing, and Tom Lennon was a great mix of funny and reflective. Being from Chicago, I was already a big fan of Stephanie Weir... I was glad to see her on the big screen!

I didn't have the same issues with the film as the previous reviewer. I don't think this film was trying to mimic those other styles, I think it did a great job of telling a story in its unique style. There's room for improvement in every film, but I think this film was put together very well. Hopefully it will be granted some wider release so I can catch it again!

Really dug this movie

[sandy-428 · 8/10 · 4 March 2008]

On the surface, I'm a fan of this movie because I love baseball films and the "where are they now" high school geeks all-grown-up Judd Apatow-style movies. But this one's different, because on a secondary level, director Paul Leuer did a great job of weaving a story that you really care about. I think that most of these movies can be campy and fun on the surface, but Tom Lennon's character is not too over-the-top, and he strikes just the right chord of being likable, real and somewhat flawed as a person. This drives him through the story to a very fitting conclusion.

Aside from the main plot lines, the movie contains a lot of great, campy, hilarious moments that balance the movie's main plot arc. Peter Biagi's shooting is fantastic as always, and I thought that Stephanie Weir's character was absolutely hilarious. Other supporting cast members were fantastic -- David Darlow as the team's trainer, Christian Finnegan as Tom Lennon's best friend and Kimberly Williams-Paisley is always spot on.

Bottom line: enjoyed it and will look for it on DVD.

can't decide if it wants to be a comedy or a tragedy---and is neither

[bodomo · 3/10 · 27 February 2008]

I see this film as director Paul Leuer's attempt to create something along the lines of Jim Jarmusch's "broken flowers": a traveling tour de force around the life of a middle-aged protagonist, who knows that he has to make changes and meets with more or less absurd circumstances in the process.

unfortunately, Leuer is not Jarmusch (or Fellini), and Thomas Lennon is no Bill Murray. Lennon's facial expressions, in sequences in which the audience is supposed to laugh, lack any range and make me think of a bovine mammal with a bad case of constipation. there's very little sentiment coming through.

the rest of the cast valiantly do what they can with such an uninspiring script---not to mention the dismal ending, that is as predictable as unlikely. trying to get something out of this movie is bound to be an exercise in futility.

Great story with a comedy driven cast makes for a great indie.

[usc777 · 10/10 · 2 April 2008]

I have to say I really enjoyed this film. I saw it at Cinequest, it was the opening night film, and to be honest I didn't have any expectations. I personally don't like most of the typical underdog sports movies that are all over the screens these days, but this is not that kind of film.

What honestly attracted me to this film was that its improv style cast starring one of my favorite Comedy Central people ever, Tom Lennon. He doesn't disappoint. He plays a lonely washed up baseball player living in a trailer park who has some kind of mental problem because he wants to leave his wife (the hot Kimberly Williams-Paisley) and start everything over. Stephnie Weir, from MadTV, plays Barb, the drunken friend, and steals every scene she's in, which aren't enough if you ask me, but I'm biased so take that with a grain of salt.

All the other actors hold their own in their respective roles all working to try and survive life in a trailer park. I don't know enough about life in a trailer park to know if it's at all accurate, but the good thing is the film has some really great scenes showing how funny it might be.

If you like the films of Christopher Guest (which I do), then I think you'll like this film as well.