Review of Gerry (2002) by Leighton T — 15 Aug 2011

Watching this movie felt ironically similar to dying slowly in the desert. With its aimless plot and frequent 5+ minute shots of silent walking, 103 minutes seemed to stretch into an eternity, which made me seriously consider eating sand and ending it all.

Worse than the plot, however, was the poorly improvised script which wouldn't have filled one 8 x 11 sheet of notebook paper. Not surprisingly, this unfortunate fact resulted in a lack of character development which sadly did not improve as the film dragged on.

Strangely, there was also no evident chemistry between these "best friends" whose relationship seemed about as shallow and uncomfortable as a blind date. To Damon's credit, however, it must have been a stretch feigning friendship with someone as overwhelmingly creepy and irritating as Casey Affleck.

Even so, this does not excuse the lack of any dynamic emotional change in the characters as new events unfolded and conditions worsened. They began the film as uninvolved and disengaged as they ended it.

In conclusion, if you find yourself with having to choose between VHS tapes at a garage sale, your 25 cents would be better spent on Judge Dredd each time.