Review of Baghead (2008) by Joshua G — 15 Jan 2009

"Baghead", directed by Mark and Jay Duplass, is the newest addition to the so-called "mumblecore" genre. The concept behind the films is that they are low budget indies that rely on character interaction rather than actual plot. In that way, they mimic the way these sort of post-college hipsters would talk: largely in random rambling anecdotes that have little to do with anything. Having only seen this film and "Hannah Takes the Stairs", i'm intrigued by this style of filmmaking - however, it's biggest problem is how uninspired the dialect is. While I don't expect profound insight for what is supposed to be a sort of cinéma vérité take on this sort of artsy city kid type, the relationships in "Baghead" and "Hannah Take the Stairs" seem to be about on par with junior high romance. "Baghead" is a better film than "Hannah Takes the Stairs", but there is still room for this genre to grow - and I, for one, have no problem watching these filmmakers evolve over the next few years.

The film centers around four unsuccessful young actors who are looking to jump-start their careers with their own indie film. Inspired by a film at an underground film festival called "We Came Naked", the four set out to write a screenplay in a secluded cabin. Their concept? A murderer in the woods who wears a bag over his head. However, in a startling turn of events, reality starts imitating fiction, and they find themselves facing the killer right out of the story they've written. It seems too coincidental, and therefore the friends suspect it's one of them, or perhaps a friend who had been set up to it.

Matt (Ross Partridge) is the leader of the group - he's the good looking and charming one. He's been dating Catherine (Elise Muller), who comes off as little more than a standard Californian blonde who has long since reached her peak. Matt's friend, Chad (Steve Zissis) is Matt's opposite. He's overweight, anxious, and terribly awkward in every which way. He's also hopelessly in love with Michelle (Greta Gerwig), who is far more interested in Matt than she is Chad. Gerwig's character is not far too different from Hannah in "Hannah Takes the Stairs" - while she gets all of the attention from the men in the film, she seems to have not aged a day since the sixth grade.

Although "Baghead" seems like it should be a horror film, the scares are rather understated. The majority of the film centers around the love triangle between Matt, Chad, and Michelle. When the killer gets involved, it provides a temporary jolt into the story but it doesn't necessarily hold that tension when baghead is not seen on screen. That being said, however, all the horror movie cliches are here (and i'd imagine they are all conscious homages rather than cheap imitations) - the helpless heroin who thinks her boyfriend is the killer, a lack of cell phone service, and a car which becomes immobile leaving the victims stranded alone in the cabin.

The cast is mostly adequate - none of the acting here is necessarily ground-breaking, but it's largely inoffensive. Ross Partridge was perhaps the most consistently good, whereas Elise Muller was underutilized and often seems like she belongs in another movie. Steve Zissis is okay, however is character was awkward to the point where it was legitimately frightening - the biggest scare of the film is not a chase by the killer, rather a scene where Chad explains to Michelle that she will fall in love with him. In there was a sequel, it would involve Chad tying Michelle up in his basement. Here is a character far more horrifying than baghead.

Of all of these young actors, however, Greta Gerwig seems to have the most growth potential. While she's not very good in dramatic sequences (there are some cringe-inducing ones here), she has an amazing amount of charisma and the kind of infantile humor that would be fitting in films along the likes of Michael Cera and Ellen Page.

"Baghead" is a very easy watch, especially given it's short runtime. I'm looking for these films to go into less familiar territory as they've yet to create a buzz on the indie scene - however, for what it is, this was fairly enjoyable. A mild recommendation.