Everybody's seen CLERKS and wondered what that movie would've been like with some more money thrown at it and more competent guys acting, editing and shooting the thing. In the 1990's, independent film had its good and its bad creeping through the screen, and comedies were a go-to spot for seeing them both come out to the forefront.
CLERKS was made for $28,000 and looked gawd-awful in my book, but with a certain comedic charm to it that enticed me to keep watching. SLACKER set Richard Linklater back about $23,000 and looked brilliant, but had some suspicious joke appeal. Is there something in the middle of first films for filmmakers on a budget?
Is Michael DeSanto's MAX ANDERSON, PRIVATE EYE the answer to my search? This, a $2,800, 86-minute crime noir parody by a guy who's made a career out of YouTube shorts?
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that for all the problems I could name in this little film, Mister DeSanto might just be the most promising debut I have seen from an independent in some time, and I speak as an aspiring filmmaker myself. The storyline was simple but effective, Charles Wetzel as the main lead shows real talent, and it's good to see Michael take the leap into real film instead of floundering in the world of internet videos. On such a low budget, the filmmaker had to rely heavily on his actors and his script, and the strength of both made up for the shortcomings of the other aspects of the film. As I've often maintained, comedies are a writer's game, as it's all in the jokes. Michael DeSanto's learned this lesson, and he's relished in it.
Now for the issues I want to stress--this was a next-to-nothing production, and it suffered quite obviously for it. The sound and lighting quality were not optimum for the viewer, and as Michael had to pretty much act as one-man crew for this venture, then surely that only compounded the difficulties. The pacing in the film was off within the first 45 minutes, which didn't lend well to the second half. The music score was overbearing in places throughout the film, one obvious example being in the opening sequence. With the issue of the sound, this overbearing music was a distraction.
Despite the shortcomings I've touched on above, I still liked the film. Kevin Smith's first movie had a larger budget to work with, and his effort wasn't quite so polished. To see DeSanto rise from the semi-professional quality of his internet work in order to create something interesting, and somewhat appealing. I would be more than willing to put in my fair share of money to enlarge DeSanto's wallet and ensure his progression as a filmmaker.
Perhaps this could spell the beginning of low-budget movies which will rise above the substandard work put out by the Asylum and Echo Bridge in the last 10 to 15 years...Now you talk about unintentional comedy...
