10 Items or Less (2006)

An actor (Freeman) prepping for an upcoming role meets a quirky grocery clerk (Vega), and the pair hit the road to show one another their respective worlds.

Director:

Brad Silberling

Writer:

Brad Silberling

Stars:

Morgan Freeman, Paz Vega, Jonah Hill

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Morgan Freeman	...	Him
Paz Vega	...	Scarlet
Jonah Hill	...	Packy
Anne Dudek	...	Lorraine
Francisca Hernandez	...	Market Wife / Market Gossip #1
Nacho Pina	...	Market Husband
Hector Running-Hawk	...	Squeezing Customer
Alexis Hernandez	...	Cowed Customer
Silvia Curiel	...	Shocked Customer
Shawn Calizo	...	Scared Customer
Kumar Pallana	...	Lee
Rosa Diaz	...	Market Gossip #2
Hector Atreyu Ruiz	...	Gangbanger in Lowrider
Bobby Cannavale	...	Bobby
Leonardo Nam	...	Kid at Target

Storyline

A well-known actor, who hasn't accepted a role in four years, is considering a project. The cousin of the director drives him to Archie's Ranch Market, in Carson, and drops him off to do a little research. He's fascinated by one of the checkers, Scarlet, a young woman from Spain with a preternatural ability to ring up items at the cash register. She hates her job, stuck at the 10 items or less lane. The actor chats her up, and when her shift ends, he asks for a ride. In the course of the afternoon, he helps her prepare for a job interview. She needs to have confidence, he needs to commit. Human contact, however brief, can change people.

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Plot Keywords:

watching tv | actor | research | job interview | interview | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes in Life You Have to Change Lanes.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Morgan Freeman and Jonah Hill have a very brief scene while riding in a car. As Morgan had a major role and this film, and since it was shot in only fifteen days, every spare moment Morgan had was spent studying lines. This scene with Jonah took three days to shoot, and between takes, Morgan was script reading. Jonah felt he was being ignored by his co-star. This was not true. When the final shot was done, and the camera was off, Morgan, to relieve the tension, turned to Jonah in a deadpan presentation, did The Name Game song from the 1960s. Jonah Jonah je jop (sic) Jonah, etc, etc. When done, Morgan told Jonah, "Now do me".

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Goofs

In the opening scene Icee and coffee cups appear and disappear in the drink caddy.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Him: Sorry, what was your name again?
Packy: Packy.
Him: Packy?
Packy: Yeah.
Him: Are we lost, Packy?

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Crazy Credits

The credits are interrupted for several brief character study scenes involving several locations from the film.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Vacancy/Lonely Hearts/In the Land of Women/Fracture (2007)

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Soundtracks

It's Me Jody
Written by Herbert Stothart

User Reviews

That's 11 items; you're pushing it just like everybody else

This is a splendidly done simplistic film that explores a theme, and gives each viewer something different that they take from it. The premise is simple: an unnamed celebrity actor (Morgan Freeman) decides to research for an upcoming role by visiting a store and watching people. He takes particular interest in the cashier at the "10 Items or Less" lane (Paz Vega), who he finds an amiable, strong, and curious presence.

Both actors play off each other brilliantly and bring solid dimension to characters in what is a character study. Not a conventional character study; they each represent entire worlds. The cashier's life is mired in a harsh and frustrating "real world," while the actor is so enmeshed in his fantasy existence that he can't do simple tasks like remember phone numbers. He readily admits he's putting on a face when he talks to people, and the whole point of researching real people shows he's not one of them.

But not only is the actor inspired by real people for his work; we see the reverse process as well. Several characters recognize "Him," and make reference to how he has inspired them with his movie roles.

The cashier's favorite song "Al Pasar la Barca," about how a girl refuses to hide behind beauty and prefers instead to pay (ie: do honest work) for boat passage, couldn't have been chosen better. It parallels with the Vega character, the only store employee with any brains or ambition, who is willing to work hard to succeed. (That's quite an aspiration, for somebody who looks like Paz Vega.) It's an odd little film, probably made on a shoestring. If you don't mind slow pacing and a "talky" approach, this film will entertain. The characters are perfectly contrasted, and the effective acting makes them endearing. A nice watch.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

8 February 2007 (Israel)

Also Known As:

10 stvari ili manje

Filming Locations:

Brentwood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$35,929, 3 December 2006

Gross USA:

$83,291

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,399,222

Company Credits

Production Co:

Reveal Entertainment, Revelations Entertainment, Mockingbird Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1