Review of A Song of Good (2008) by Rajneel S — 15 Feb 2009

An extremely low-budget, but not unlikeable, entry to the slow-paced, desaturated, shoe-gazing, drowning-metaphor-riddled, urban slum landscape, New Zealand, drama genre. Director Greg King was apparently unable to create the visual and aural language he originally intended, due to the film's low budget, and this does drag the film straight into the tell-tale realm of digi-feature hell, but the film manages to keep itself steady thanks to some real gems - namely the extremely likeable Gareth Reeves, a wonderfully curmudgeon Ian Mune and Greg King's pacey script which never bores thanks to its earnest lead character who is gifted with moments of inspired genius and a heart of gold.

The film's a mixed bag over all - I didn't find the "black" comedy (more quirky) that funny and there are many sequences which feel as if it was shot for TV (there's hardly a closeup in the whole movie), but overall the film delivers what it sets out to do and while I'm not sure there is a market for films like this (see - Lili Zanuck's "Rush" or Larry Clarke's "Another Day In Paradise"), you do not feel cheated at the end of it all.

Slow, dreary, depressing and introspective, a character film without much of a concept, but still far better than what the film's terribly edited trailer makes it out to be.