'Bridge And Tunnel' review by Jake Boyle
In an act of extreme (and potentially misplaced) trust, Glacier Road Productions have made their 2014 film Bridge And Tunnel free to watch this January, and are then asking for the viewer to donate however much they think the experience was worth. The film shows a year in the life of a group of young friends in a New York suburb, which isn't exactly groundbreaking but certainly gives the story plenty of options to explore.
Those options are taken numerously. Despite the clearly defined time frame, this isn't a story with a beginning or end as such, more just a collection of scenes showing the progression of various plotlines. The audience is brought into the middle of them and most of them go unresolved. Adherence to reality runs throughout, both in the lack of sensation and closure on events, and then the general mundanity of the characters and their lives. This isn't exactly a criticism - the mature realness is quite refreshing, and investment comes easier when the situations are relatable - but there's often a struggle to imbue the events with any sense of drama or even relevance. Speaking of relevance, there's various topical references scattered throughout, and Jason Michael Brescia (the writer/director) very evidently has an axe to grind. I'm all for talking about serious issues in movies, but the way it's placed into the dialogue is so unnatural seeming and forced that when it's present, it completely pulls you out of any engrossment you were experiencing.
There are some strokes of invention. The irreverent graphics and voice-over used to advance the plot is thoroughly charming, and Wass Steven's permanently irate bartender is offbeat enough to shake things up, stealing all the film's best moments with a few fantastic monologues. The multiple plotlines allow the film to touch on many subjects, but some of them are worth more screentime than they get (a gut-punching moment of grief, a mirthsome but lightly tense scene at a fertility clinic), and others could do with being shortened or removed entirely. The scenes showing the initiations of new romances are far too familiar to entertain, and they're only elevated to any level of interest by the charisma of Mary Kate Wiles and Arjun Gupta.
Bridge And Tunnel was, on the whole, an enjoyable film but one that meanders around, occasionally stumbling. It's a nicely down-to-earth story with evidence of both heart and brains, but finds itself semi-regularly hampered by stilted dialogue, uneventfulness and a narrative that is all too often told rather than shown. A story consisting purely of a middle part does have its perks as well as the more obvious pitfalls, the humour is gentle but present, and much the same can be said for the drama. From an independent director it's a work that's not exactly promising, but certainly shows a fair amount of potential.
You can watch Bridge And Tunnel here: www.bridgeandtunnelfilm.com/watch/
You should donate if you can.
There are some strokes of invention. The irreverent graphics and voice-over used to advance the plot is thoroughly charming, and Wass Steven's permanently irate bartender is offbeat enough to shake things up, stealing all the film's best moments with a few fantastic monologues. The multiple plotlines allow the film to touch on many subjects, but some of them are worth more screentime than they get (a gut-punching moment of grief, a mirthsome but lightly tense scene at a fertility clinic), and others could do with being shortened or removed entirely. The scenes showing the initiations of new romances are far too familiar to entertain, and they're only elevated to any level of interest by the charisma of Mary Kate Wiles and Arjun Gupta.
Bridge And Tunnel was, on the whole, an enjoyable film but one that meanders around, occasionally stumbling. It's a nicely down-to-earth story with evidence of both heart and brains, but finds itself semi-regularly hampered by stilted dialogue, uneventfulness and a narrative that is all too often told rather than shown. A story consisting purely of a middle part does have its perks as well as the more obvious pitfalls, the humour is gentle but present, and much the same can be said for the drama. From an independent director it's a work that's not exactly promising, but certainly shows a fair amount of potential.
You can watch Bridge And Tunnel here: www.bridgeandtunnelfilm.com/watch/
You should donate if you can.
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