Tweet
Released by: Film Movement
Date released: May 29, 2012.
Directed by: Adam Reid
Starring: Harry Chase, Kamel Boutros, Lynn Cohen, James Urbaniak, Nate Smith, Sabrina Lloyd
Year: 2010
Purchase From Amazon
The Movie
Small casts in small films doesn't necessarily equal small content. The focus on characters allows for a better analysis of many aspects of the human condition, insightful and entertaining. Hello Lonesome follows this notion, examining the issues of loneliness and abandonment without heavy-handed drama.
The film itself is comprised of three non-intersecting stories. One story focuses on aging divorcee and lousy dad Bill (Harry Chase). He's a voiceover actor doing all his work at his secluded home on some expansive property and is clearly very much alone. His only reliable human contact is a delivery driver (Boutros), an opera lover and jovial enough. Bill attempts contacts with his estranged daughter by leaving her voicemails that range from comedic and playful to painful and tragic.
Another story centers upon a widower, Eleanor (Cohen), and her quiet copy-editor neighbor, Gary (Urbaniak). She clearly misses her departed husband and focuses her love and affection on the '66 Thunderbird they bought and used together. After getting towed home due to being pulled over by the police and having her license revoked due to her eyesight Gary offers the standard neighborly option, “Well, if you ever need anything...†And to his surprise Eleanor takes him up on it. The two quickly form a very friendly relationship, thanks mostly to Gary's dry humor and her openness.
The third story tells the tale of two young, successful urbanites who meet online and decide to make a go of it together. Gordon (Smith) is a sports junkie and seems to be a typical dude while Deb (Lloyd) is a playful marketing director in the city. The two are not desperate, looking more just for some human companionship and sex. But a bad prognosis from Deb's doctor pairs them more closely in tragedy.
Each story seeks out some sense of triumph for overcoming loneliness where circumstances have left people alone and, seemingly, isolated in an uncaring world. But by entering into relationships with just one other person - who, in turn, reaches out of their own loneliness - the path to living becomes ultimately clear and rewarding.
Audio/Video/Extras
Like most entries distributed by Film Movement this DVD comes in 1.85:1 widescreen with a very clean transfer. Its English-only, non-subtitled audio track is available in Dolby Digital 2.0 SRD and serves this film fairly well, only really getting tested a couple of times during the weak/whispered conversation of Debby and Gordon's story. The director's commentary track is lively thanks to the inclusion of not only Reid but also Chase, Cohen and Smith. Small productions tend to create easy relationships and the sincerity of their camaraderie is evident in their jovial approach to their stories told here.
Apart from the standard director bio and trailers for other Film Movement titles this disc's included short (:19 min.) film is another by Reid, titled While the Widow Is Away. It even comes with a commentary track as well, featuring Reid and actors Cohen and Boutros. Here, Boutros is a building super, living a deprived, unfulfilled existence that all changes when he enters the widow's (Cohen) apartment to fix some things. He begins to visit the place more and more often, finding some luxurious solitude here, the same solitude that pains the widow as she's constantly reminded of her deceased husband. Boutros keeps revisiting the place long enough to teach himself to play the beautiful grand piano in the apartment, too. And it's that centerpiece that eventually brings the two characters together with a closeness that spans the gulf of their own lonely lives.
Summary
Finding a hopeful path out of loneliness with companionship out of abandonment the small stories of regular folks' everyday existence provides the real depth of Hello Lonesome. The embrace of the title posits the condition as a natural component of life and even the opening/closing nature show narration sparks a tone of hope, that our species can move on emotionally, that one end isn't necessarily finality. Personal, one-on-one relationships are where we as humans might not succeed but it's where we thrive and the three independent stories of Hello Lonesome portray that with a genuine heartfelt sincerity that's a joy to behold.
