HOLY ROLLERS: a Hasidic Jewish WACKNESS

site | trailerI dig it mucho. From the description of the film, the unlikely criminal shenanigans—the recruiting of Hasidic Jewish youths as international drug couriers in the late 90s—seem like they would be the at the scandalous forefront of this film, but it's really a bittersweet (aren't they all, if they're good?) coming-of-age teen/tween misadventure. Lately at the movies my mind keeps tagging whatever I'm watching with other films I've seen that seem to resonate with it in theme, genre, and/or style. The two that hit me while watching ROLLERS: THE WACKNESS and ADVENTURELAND. Very good company in my book.

Eisenberg is well cast as Sam Gold, the restless 20-yo offered ever wilder walks on the wild side by his worldly-wise neighbor, Yosef, right hand man to an international drug smuggler, Jacky. Ari Graynor as Rachel, Jacky's can't-stop-being-sensuous girlfriend, well, can't stop being sensuous. As inevitable as her breaking down of Sam's orthodox standoffishness, awkwardness, and naivete is, it's still remarkably sweet.

There was this one moment for me in the film when Sam is returning to the states from a courier run, he's on the plane, just... I dunno... thinking, I think. Somehow, in a second, he becomes this Man, an adult. Granted, the actor's gotta be 20-something, but you know what I mean, right? His youthy, mealy-mouthed, mumblecore self just dissolved away, replaced by the face, the presence, of a man. I don't know if it was just my perception alone or my response to the work of the filmmakers, but it was uncanny. Quick as it appeared, tho, when he turned to the window, or the light changed, or something, it disappeared, and youthy Jesse Eisenberg was back.

I would still like to see Jesse and Michael Cera in a nice guy UFC smackdown. Literal or figurative. Or maybe they're alternate universe versions of one another. They could be the two Frys in live-action version of "The Farnsworth Parabox!" Heh.

I've gotta see about tracking down some of the music. How do DJs know what "lounge" is and is supposed to be like? It just seems to know what it wants to be somehow. There were quite a few Ibiza-like tracks playing at clubs and party scenes (these guys were running ecstasy) that had that French lounge vibe that I really like but haven't really gone digging into.

Keep on keepin on~