Review of Old Fashioned (2014) by Erin P — 13 Feb 2015

"Old Fashioned" is a movie centered around a stand-up guy named Clay who has very antiquated beliefs about romance and courting. He believes dating is destructive and thus remains emotionally detached from the rest of the world due to his own inhibitions and misgivings.

Despite his hang-ups, he is a very noble, stand-up guy who wants a real relationship but one that is based on mutual respect without the head games associated with courting and flirting. Clay owns a used furniture shop and is a landlord.

When a free-spirited young woman moves in beneath him, she helps him to break down the barriers and walls he is holding up and he learns to deeply and transcendently connect with her. Considering this film had no well-known actors, I thought the acting was pretty serviceable.

I knew very little about this film going in, given the lack of advertising and the limited release of the film. There is a lot of schmaltz in this film, but I found it to be high-quality schmaltz. The ending is paint-by-numbers, but in an original and endearing way.

I thought the story and the romance was nice, however obsolete the plot devices may have been. The director even copied silent movies in the opening credits. The character of Clay is likeable in an offbeat way, since most men don't have his level of dignity.

I was happy to see how his foil in the movie transformed his beliefs ---------------------------------------------------------- B.