Geek disfunctionality

What to say about this movie.

I rented Eagle vs Shark primarily because it has Jemaine Clement from Flight of the Conchords in it, he's a pretty funny guy, and this is a comedy.  I really didn't have much to go on besides that and the film festival stamps on the cover.  So, what'd I get then...

This movie is painful and awkward to such an extent that it gives Ben Stiller a run for his money.  It's a relationship comedy about a couple of really awkward and geeky people, and the manner of the filming and scripting keeps it pretty raw.  For starters, yes, they do really wear the costumes on the cover in the movie, at a "dress as your favorite animal" party thrown by Jarrod (Clement) and attended by Lily (Loren Horsley) who wasn't invited to this nerd fest, but who found Jarrod so dreamy, she just had to crash the party.  However awkward you think this film might be, double that and you'll be getting close.

So, the plot goes roughly like so.  Lily has a crush on Jarrod, and Jarrod has a date to dole out some whoop-ass on a bully who picked on him for years back in high school.  Because Lily has access to a car (which Jarrod lacks), she accompanies him on his journey back to his home town where his parents and siblings still live.  They are a largely dysfunctional bunch and we see Jarrod is on a never ending quest for approval from his father.

All of this geekiness made us wonder for the first half of the movie just what we were doing wasting our time.  There were some funny moments here and there, but by and large it just didn't really make a whole lot of sense to us why this film would even be made.  The second half started slowly pulling it together, and the movie wraps up in a manner that is, for lack of a more appropriate word, sweet.  Not "sweet" as in "cool," but "sweet" as in "adorable."  Horsley's portrayal of Lily completely makes this movie.  

It's tough to recommend this outright, because one feels compelled to throw in the caveat that they need to be really patient and endure the first half with the promise that there'll be a worthwhile payout at the end, but there ya have it.