A Bird in the Bush (2008)

Out-of-work college professor Grant Oldman gets more than he bargains for when he brings an unknown woman to pose as his wife for a dinner party. After a disastrous evening, Grant finds ... See full summary »

Director:

Michael Fredianelli

Writer:

Michael Fredianelli

Stars:

Jana Ireton, Michael Fredianelli, Michael Nosé

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jana Ireton	...	Barbra Bridges
Michael Fredianelli	...	Grant Oldman
Michael Nosé	...	Christopher Sarna
Brian Gallegos	...	Terry Holbrook
Jeff Handy	...	Jake Howard
Shai Wilson	...	Carla James
Aaron Stielstra	...	Flatulent Hobo
Ronald Kaplan	...	Daddy Don Guido
James Soderborg	...	Warren Bridges
Kathleen Funston	...	Martha Bridges
Dik Martin	...	Clint Sullivan (as Dick Martin)
Michael Strange	...	Eleanor Sullivan
Kevin Giffin	...	Bobbie M.
Carlos Gallegos	...	Dean Kilpatrick
Scott Fredianelli	...	Giovanni Sacci

Storyline

Out-of-work college professor Grant Oldman gets more than he bargains for when he brings an unknown woman to pose as his wife for a dinner party. After a disastrous evening, Grant finds himself homeless and unemployed with the unwanted task of supervising his unstable date that has inadvertently kidnapped the key witness to a fatal mob massacre. With federal agents hot on their trail, they must escort the witness to safety and escape the city before the mafia can execute its deadly plans.

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Plot Keywords:

slapstick comedy | mafia | shot in the leg | prostitute | hobo | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 June 2008 (USA)

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wild Dogs Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The DVD was pulled shortly after release to omit the bonus short "The Signature Collection" due to a copyright infringement. Copies with the short are extremely rare and only a few made it through sales.

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Goofs

When the silver Mustang containing our three protagonists spins around in the parking lot, it is plainly visible that there is only one person in the car.

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Connections

References Running Scared (2006)

User Reviews

shockingly good

Ultra-low budget doesn't really hinder this crack Action-RomCom (?) from delivering plenty of old-fashioned hilarious goods. While the acting is decidedly uneven, ranging from high school kids who had to have been friends / siblings of the director to Shakespeare quality (the Frank Oz-ish mob boss guy is great), the film maintains a clear purpose and the right tone throughout.

Certainly the main thing that this film needed was some lighting - as the Peter Hyams natural-light look doesn't help in the long stretches of very dim and off-white balanced interior shots (meaning there's a pervasive orange hue to everything). Also, a good chunk of dialog in one scene is quite obviously out-of-sync. This sort of thing is just enough to make in inaccessible to the average discriminating viewer. Granted, a person like me understands these are probably due to budget constraints and a very rushed production scale (I heard the thing was made top-to-bottom in less than 2 months!), but that doesn't help an Indie film find an audience and this flick will likely vanish into obscuro-Indie hell like the rest of them.

However, what's amazing about the film is that it really delivers an interesting story and manages to gather up steam and seem fresh when it's of a totally done-to-death genre... and for no money to boot! This is at odds with most of his other "films", which usually boil down to the star wandering around shooting people. Supposedly on this one the director/star/producer/editor/keygrip/bestboy Fredianelli got in a lot of hot water with the local authorities for shooting without permits and insurance... and it's amazing what he (and some of the actors, anyway) accomplish with so little. Decidedly unprofessional but uncomfortably close, this film could very well prime the director for a go at the Festival circuit if he continues to improve upon his formula.