Cheap Thrills

CHEAP THRILLS
Starring:Pat Healy, Ethan Embry, David Koechner, Sara Paxton
Writer:Trent Haaga, David Chirchirillo
Director:E.L. Katz
Availability:DVD widely available from Drafthouse Films
Rating:

    Hype can be a dangerous thing.  If a movie doesn't live up to it, there's always the inevitable backlash.  I have never been one to buy into hype, especially with indie cinema.  I've found that my tastes are often wildly different from the norm, and I'm fine with that.  A recent example of this was Daddy's Little Girl.  Just about every reviewer I've encountered loved it, and I just thought it was a half-baked mess.  So, while everything about Cheap Thrills seemed like a movie I would love, the overwhelming amount of hype it received made me more than a bit skeptical.

    Well, I can safely say that Cheap Thrills is that rare movie that lives up to the hype.  This is dark comedy at its absolute blackest, and I loved every fucking minute of it.  Pat Healy plays a down on his luck guy who, while drinking with an old friend who seems to have hit hard times as well, meets a mysterious couple who start offering the both of them insane amounts of money to take on a harmless bet or two.  However, as the night progresses, the bets become more outlandish and dangerous, and the two have to come to terms with the fact that, when it comes to money, there are very few things that are off limits.

    There are so many things worth applauding here.  For starters, the acting is fantastic!  Pat Healy plays the part of the family man struggling with his own moral code beautifully.  Healy is an actor that's really been making a name for himself lately, and I can't wait to see just how much he is capable of as an actor.  Ethan Embry is the deadbeat friend, and though I've always found him likable as an actor, he's never delivered a performance with this kind of intensity.  David Koechner, as the man with the cash, gives his role the perfect blend of menace and hilarity.  This is an ensemble working at the peak of their powers, and I don't know that the movie would have worked as well without these players.

    One thing I will say is that this is definitely a writer's movie.  Trent Haaga and David Chirchirillo's screenplay is an absolute marvel.  The dialogue is razor sharp, and they simply refuse to let their characters fall into the realm of caricature.  Not only that, but the movie is not as predictable as you might be led to believe.  It definitely caught me off guard on more than one occasion.  I do have to give some mad props to director E.L. Katz.  Katz has spent most of his career as a writer, most notably as the writer of the first couple Adam Wingard flicks, and I think that's a big part of why this movie works so well.  He understands the importance of the written word.  Plus, he keeps the pace moving at such a breakneck speed, that it's absolutely impossible to be bored.  It's not heavy on style, but Katz certainly shows an insane amount of skills behind the camera.

    Drafthouse Films never ceases to impress me with the quality of films they distribute, and this one is no exception.  Cheap Thrills is a movie that is perfectly suited for my sense of humor.  It's grim, depressing stuff, but once you reach the simply perfect final shot of the film, you can't help but walk away with a big, shit-eating grin.  I can't recommend this movie enough.  I've seen a lot of people compare this to last year's Would You Rather, but where that movie was a nasty little b-movie with a fantastic turn from Jeffrey Combs, this is a much more satisfying experience.  Great acting, brilliant writing, and a demented arsenic-laced wit make this one a near masterpiece, and easily one of the best indie films I've seen this year.

    Until next time, my fellow freaks and weirdos...