Review of Life's an Itch (2012) by Chris K — 06 Aug 2014

There is something amazing about "LIfe's an Itch". Maybe it isn't amazing, but in this day of cookie-cutter movies and test-audience ruined movies, something great happened with it. It's a shame though that this off the radar, low budget, poorly handled at times movie will probably never hear this from anybody but this little tiny review from little tiny ol' me. I'm not just anybody though. I am a movie critic, I have a film degree, I am a screenwriter and I have had one script nearly sold to Paramount and another made into a low budget movie. So, my opinion isn't to be taken with a grain of salt.

"Life's An Itch" could have been much better had it been left to season a little bit more. It could have been a better movie had the lead male actor been more prepared or better. It could have been a better movie had the editor left a couple inexcusable bad edits in the movie; including a sound-looping edit where the person speaking's mouth is obviously not moving and a scene where Ali Corbin's character Gillian Gracin is doing yoga outside a window and a quick cut outside has her doing something completely different. It could have been better had they decided early on to be a little more silly and realize they were making a movie about yoga and had some fun with it. It could have been better had many of the camera shots served only the purpose of showing off an extremely attractive actress.

What was great or 'amazing' about the movie though was its ability to go after a taboo subject and handle it with great care when most movies just avoid it. You see, in movies where infidelity is prevalent or possible, it is typically frowned upon because it casts the characters in a negative light. In a light movie such as this, it is even more frowned upon. Yet, what happened here wasn't that; it was about two people who didn't expect to connect, but did. Just because people are married doesn't mean they can't still bond with someone of the opposite sex, or even find platonic love. In "Life's an Itch", a musician and a yoga instructor connect. Thanks to Ali Corbin pretty much nailing every emotion; joy, curiosity, cuteness, sorrow, regret and peacefulness, this connection works greatly.

"Life's an Itch" is not a good movie, but it could have been had the creators taken a little bit more time and put out a better product. Too often, people get scripts, cameras and excitement that they're making a movie and rush ahead before making sure they are ready. I guess that's what separates the Spielbergs, Finchers and Hitchcocks of the world from the countless people these days that can get a hold of equipment and make movies.

I bought "Life's an Itch" and I'm glad I did. There is so much redeeming about Ali Corbin's performance along with a message about platonic love and the need for people to be good to each other, that it is in the least worth a viewing. Just understand that from a technical standpoint, the pre & post-production should have lasted much much much longer.