Meme (2018)

A mysterious VHS tape sends a young woman on quest to discover its maker, but she finds herself instead.

Director:

Sean Mannion

Writer:

Sean Mannion

Stars:

Sarah Schoofs, Shivantha Wijesinha, Lauren A. Kennedy

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Sarah Schoofs	...	Jennifer
Shivantha Wijesinha	...	Tommy
Lauren A. Kennedy	...	Lesley
Kitty Ostapowicz	...	Carrie
Rory Lipede	...	Andrea
Chaz H. Cleveland	...	Kyle
June Dare	...	Larraine
Alex Bone	...	Marcus
Tara Cioletti	...	Dr. Danielle Blackmore
Matthew Addison	...	Craig
Phillip Andry	...	Carlos
Lauren Shaw	...	Lee
Corinne Fisher	...	Woman in Bathroom
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Julian Barbosa	...	Party Guest
Nadia Bellavina	...	Bar Patron

Storyline

Jennifer, an independent designer disappointed in her stalled relationship and career, discovers a surreal mashup videotape, labeled "Meme," among a friend's VHS collection. She goes in search of Meme's creator, tracking down people who appear on the tape to gain greater insight into what it is and why it exists. As she pursues the creator of the tape she takes greater control of other aspects of her life including her relationship, difficult clients, and a drinking problem that increasingly interferes with her life.

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 June 2018 (USA)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Loved it.

I was lucky enough to see this film while working at the Cucalorus Film Festival in Wilmington, NC. While, admittedly, I initially went in purely based on my curiosity surrounding the title, I quickly found myself engaged. Just from the brief opening title sequence, I could tell this would be right up my alley, and ended up not being disappointed.

Without giving away too much, the story deals with topics of prolonging strained relationships in a way that only someone who has actually experienced that could convey. As a result, it avoids the over-dramatization that would be found in a bigger studio production, and instead comes off as realistic, and extremely relatable.

It also acts as a love-letter to cult cinema, and the VHS era, and is a joy to watch for all of the little nuggets and references, but manages to appeal to the niche without alienating viewers that may not be as familiar with that subject. This is complimented by interesting and unique stylistic choices, both through camerawork, and post-production (ex. the use of VCR rewind/fast-forward functions in flashback sequences)

The story is as good as its core cast, who all give authentic performances, and deliver the dialogue as if they are actually saying it. This makes them seem less like characters, and more like real people, which reinforces the repeatability of the subject matter.

All-in-all, an extremely worthwhile, and thought-provoking watch, that I found myself thinking about weeks after the festival, and am glad I stumbled upon. Happy to have taken the opportunity to go to the viewing, and would definitely recommend that others see, if given the chance.