I just graduated film school, the whole while drinking every day, getting a DUI, attending AA meetings, and loathing most . I'm a huge fan of this movie for what it's core values and ideas are. It's essentially a short about functional alcoholics but also how some of the smartest and most creative people in the world can't see the world without some sort of mind altering substance. It's a good look at how dumb people can be, and at how easy it is to drown everything out. It's funny to me because as I'm writing this review there is a really loud neighbor explaining what alcoholics are like...and whoever is on the balcony with them is loving it, and spouting about people they know who drink a lot. It's all humorous, and though I agree that this film isn't really a comedy, it's a good farce about alcoholism. And not to take the subject lightly but, it all comes down to the individual. Which is what makes the ending so poignant for me.
9 Reviews
Well made but a very odd film to be on FOD
planktonrules15 May 2011
A few days ago, Funny or Die sent out a Tweet about "Successful Alcoholics"--recommending the film and saying it's posted on their site. However, after viewing the film, I think it's a very odd film for them, as it's really NOT a comedy but a very dark little film about alcoholism.
The film stars two very obnoxious yet oddly successful drunks. No matter how intoxicated they become, people around them seem to put up with their boorish antics--mostly because the man and woman have been able to successfully lie and manipulate. While perhaps funny in a very dark way, it's pretty intense when they find themselves in Denver at 2am and start panicking because they can't find any liquor--and their eventual solution is pretty pathetic.
I am not sure exactly who the audience is for this film. It is quite well made but not funny. Things like the DTs, memory issues and vomiting aren't especially laughable. Perhaps it's a good poignant little film to show to budding alcoholics.
The film stars two very obnoxious yet oddly successful drunks. No matter how intoxicated they become, people around them seem to put up with their boorish antics--mostly because the man and woman have been able to successfully lie and manipulate. While perhaps funny in a very dark way, it's pretty intense when they find themselves in Denver at 2am and start panicking because they can't find any liquor--and their eventual solution is pretty pathetic.
I am not sure exactly who the audience is for this film. It is quite well made but not funny. Things like the DTs, memory issues and vomiting aren't especially laughable. Perhaps it's a good poignant little film to show to budding alcoholics.
An excellent dark comedy short film
danieltravanti27 October 2019
The reviewers with comments seeming to struggle with "what the film was" or "what is it trying to say?", or particularly the penultimate review expressing bewilderment over how/why/when the film ended..... bewilder me. They are either overthinking it, or apparently lack any sense of pathos and/or humor. For Christ's sake. It is not intended to be a treatise on alcoholism.... or a "primer for budding alcoholics" as one obtuse commenter suggested. Jesus, people like these commenters could drive one to drink.
Successful blend of comedy and pathos
bob the moo20 April 2014
Dark comedy is something I enjoy a lot but unfortunately it is something that is very easy to do badly and it is impressive when you find a film that really manages to walk that fine line well. In Successful Alcoholics we more or less have this; the plot sees a young professional couple who somehow manage to hold down jobs while mostly spending their nights blackout drunk and their days either suffering or maintaining that drunken buzz they need to just get by. As a story it is surprisingly engaging because you do get interested in the characters because they are not just comedy creations, even though they of course do work as such as well.
The film manages to just about keep them within a reality created by the short, so that although they are extreme to be able to get laughs, they never drift too far from the point where the film ultimately needs to come back to. The dialogue and scenarios are mostly very funny and I liked the darkness always on the edge – in particular as the film comes into the final third it is a little touching in what it delivers and how. The performances help this a great deal. Miller is a good presence but it is Caplan that does the best work as she has to bridge the comedic and the serious and she does it very well. Both make good drunks as well – it is not as easy to act drunk as you would think but both of them do it convincingly here.
Overall it is an odd film but it is both funny and quite touchingly engaging by the end. It is a dark piece so those expecting pratfalls or frat-boy drunkenness may be disappointed, but this works on a couple of levels and I was surprised by how good a short film it was.
The film manages to just about keep them within a reality created by the short, so that although they are extreme to be able to get laughs, they never drift too far from the point where the film ultimately needs to come back to. The dialogue and scenarios are mostly very funny and I liked the darkness always on the edge – in particular as the film comes into the final third it is a little touching in what it delivers and how. The performances help this a great deal. Miller is a good presence but it is Caplan that does the best work as she has to bridge the comedic and the serious and she does it very well. Both make good drunks as well – it is not as easy to act drunk as you would think but both of them do it convincingly here.
Overall it is an odd film but it is both funny and quite touchingly engaging by the end. It is a dark piece so those expecting pratfalls or frat-boy drunkenness may be disappointed, but this works on a couple of levels and I was surprised by how good a short film it was.
Wow
bballplayer30014 May 2011
Wow is all I can say. Obviously, seeing this short film posted on "Funny Or Die" makes you anticipate a lot of the humorous scenes you'd expect based on the title. But the actual plot begins to develop and it gets way more intense than you'd have expected. In short: watch it.
Impressive acting by T.J. Miller, but I think this film is a great example of his abilities as a writer. After seeing him in She's Out of My League, I thought he would be a goofy comedic actor in Judd Apatow-esque films the rest of his career, but this has changed my mind.
Great acting all around. Great use of humor to keep the film from getting too dark. Hey, its a short film, and its online so find a half hour of your time to watch it.
Impressive acting by T.J. Miller, but I think this film is a great example of his abilities as a writer. After seeing him in She's Out of My League, I thought he would be a goofy comedic actor in Judd Apatow-esque films the rest of his career, but this has changed my mind.
Great acting all around. Great use of humor to keep the film from getting too dark. Hey, its a short film, and its online so find a half hour of your time to watch it.
A funny and thought provoking short film
blakelockett4527 July 2016
Warning: Spoilers
TJ Miller and Liz Caplan are both great in this funny and honest portrait of addiction.
This film starts off with Drake and Lindsay having a good time with their drinking. They seem happy, even though to the outside world, getting blackout drunk on a Tuesday night would seem unusual.
Their friends try to help them, but they both seem contempt in their life of heavy drinking.
This all comes to a halt when the film takes a turn. Lindsay experiences major withdrawals on the road and decides she needs to turn her life around, leaving Drake alone on his self destructive path.
This is one of the first films I've seen to acknowledge the two sides of drinking,the fun side and the dark side. And it balances the two well in a very un preachy way with great acting.
A funny and heartfelt short film
9 out of ten stars
This film starts off with Drake and Lindsay having a good time with their drinking. They seem happy, even though to the outside world, getting blackout drunk on a Tuesday night would seem unusual.
Their friends try to help them, but they both seem contempt in their life of heavy drinking.
This all comes to a halt when the film takes a turn. Lindsay experiences major withdrawals on the road and decides she needs to turn her life around, leaving Drake alone on his self destructive path.
This is one of the first films I've seen to acknowledge the two sides of drinking,the fun side and the dark side. And it balances the two well in a very un preachy way with great acting.
A funny and heartfelt short film
9 out of ten stars
Successful film
Horst_In_Translation3 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
"Successful Alcoholics" is a 25-minute short film from 5 years ago starring Lizzy Caplan from "Masters of Sex". Apart from her, there are a couple more well-known actors in here such as Emmy winner Tony Hale. And the male protagonist is played by T.J. Miller, who also co-wrote the script together with director Jordan Vogt-Roberts ("The Kings of Summer"). The title describe the film pretty nicely. It's about a young couple who try to master their social and professional lives despite being heavy alcoholics. There is quite a bit of comedy to this film, but it also brings the necessary heaviness that you'd expect from a film about this subject. All in all, it is certainly a good watch and the actors do a fine job here. Also interesting to see how everybody deals differently with the protagonists' issues and I liked that there is no completely happy ending here. Forced feel-good is bad and I love the authenticity that comes with this little movie. I would not say it's truly outstanding at any point like for example Mary Elizabeth Winstead's "Smashed", but it is still a recommendable short movie. Thumbs up.
Not A Great Success
Theo Robertson18 February 2014
This is a short film featuring Drake and Lindsey two fictional characters who have become physically addicted to alcohol and because of this find their world beginning to collapse around them . There's two ways co-writers TJ Miller and Jordan Vogt Roberts could develop this . One is a serious tone and the other is as quirky black comedy farce . Since it's a short film then predictably the quirky nature wins out in the end . This shouldn't be a criticism but the subject matter somewhat pales in comparison to more serious feature length movies featuring alcoholism . There also seems to be a slight misunderstanding of what alcoholism is . It's not the binge drinking seen on city streets on weekend evenings but the constant topping up where the alcoholic appears almost but not quite sober . A person with a serious alcohol addiction wouldn't vomit as seen here because their brain chemistry , especially the dopamine nerve receptors in the brain has been changed by alcohol use hence the brain doesn't send signals to the rest of the body to reject the alcohol . Quite the reverse - the brain craves alcohol
I am probably missing the point however and like so many short films Successful ALCOHOLICS is something of a calling card to studios that cries out come and get us . On a technical level involving cinematography and editing it's adequate enough but again I felt like the story could have done with a more gloomy nature . Nothing bad but nothing exceptional
I am probably missing the point however and like so many short films Successful ALCOHOLICS is something of a calling card to studios that cries out come and get us . On a technical level involving cinematography and editing it's adequate enough but again I felt like the story could have done with a more gloomy nature . Nothing bad but nothing exceptional
Shocking end
lulixagex27 April 2018
We were surprised when the movie ended since we first thought that the movie is probably edited by a third party or not downloaded properly. Therefore we came to imdb to check it out. To our surprise the movie is a well rated (7.6) short movie with good reviews. Now looking at the comments we were more confused to know what have we missed from the movie more that what is described in the storyline: "A couple that are very successful in their jobs and at the same time have a drinking problem try to manage their love life, their social life and their jobs."!? I literally created this account to discover this.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
