Review of 10 Items or Less (2006) by James Y — 01 Jan 2010

Morgan Freeman and Paz Vega come together in this low budget fare about an actor (Freeman) who befriends convenience store cashier, Scarlet (Vega) whilst doing research for a new movie. Scarlet is a strong willed, no nonesense and spirited woman which is what fascinates Freeman's character (who seemingly goes without a name). Initially she's irritated by his constant amusement at the staff in the store and is a little suspicious of his "research". However, she warms to his unassuming character and agrees to humour him in his desire to get what he needs for his upcoming role. The film follows them both driving around Los Angeles comparing stories about their lives, goals and desires.

There's good character development and touching scenes of their friendship as it unfolds and the strength of the film is undoubtedly the natural chemistry Freeman and Vega share. What lets the film down is that it occasionally suffers from slow scenes and gratuitous lengthy dialogue. Also, I found it a little too obvious in it's appeal to fans of Sophia Coppolla's Lost In Translation with it's "lost-older-man-befriends-lost-young-woman" sub plot.

To be fair to director Brad Silberling, I don't think his intention is to change people's lives with this film. That said, 10 Items Or Less is a charming, funny and satisfying indie film.