Review of Petunia (2013) by Mark J — 23 Jul 2015

Ash Christian's film should not work. A year in the life of an eccentric intellectual well-heel'd NY family and all the wacky people and things they get up to! More or less this is what the movie is about. In other words -- this is territory that has been covered multiple times with varying degrees of success.

The thing is that Ash Christian paces the film well, has an exceptionally strong cast and he somehow manages to make "the familiar" just enough different to be entertaining.

Just as characters and situations threat to verge into "annoyance" -- Christian's little film snaps like the aversion-therapy wrist rubberband one of the characters continually pulls to suppress urges -- the characters and situations reveal truths that lend something unexpected to the movie.

Christine Lahti delivers a frantic, inappropriately hilarious and somehow realistic performance that aids the film's sometimes tired ideas. But the real magic in the movie belongs to two of the most underrated actors working in film, Tobias Segal and Brittany Snow. These two characters run the risk of being the most "cloying" within quirky Petunia Family Universe. But both Segal and Snow are so comically-gifted and share that magic screen presence that makes us like them. And both are naturally funny actors.

I had never heard of this film. I decided to rent it via iTunes because I was curious to see what Thora Birch has been up to. She and her father are two of the movie's producers. Birch has a crucial role in the story, but her character is more in the background and serves as a catalyst. I suspect that Thora Birch is probably the most talented actor involved. Luck in Planet Hollywood Logic has not worked in her favor for over a decade. After delivering two amazing performances in "American Beauty" and even more so in "Ghost World" she seems to have been pushed into the world of B-grade movies. It is a tragic truth. I'm sorry but Scarlett Johansson has lucked into the place that should have gone to Birch. I'm not trying to dismiss Johansson, but her origin toward stardom will forever be linked to Birch and "Ghost World" --- both actors are beautiful and have refused to give up their curves to conform to the lollipop -headed stick figure actors. But Birch is clearly the more versatile actor. And I think it reflects her intelligence to opt for a smaller role because it is the one that makes the most sense for her. That is a call most actor/producers would not make.

This movie does not re-invent the wheel, but it is highly entertaining. It reminded me a bit of the early work of Don Roos. The goal is to entertain, but not never requires you to drop you IQ to enjoy it. If you're looking to laugh and think a bit, this film is a safe bet.