Director: Andrew Jack Zuckerman
Stars: Sam Landman, Virginia Newcomb, London Kim
Running time: 72 mins
The second feature from director Andrew Jack Zuckerman (Undergrads), this low-key comedy drama-slash-sports movie is a deceptively simple tale, but it hits all the right targets, delivering warmth, humour and surprisingly strong emotion. That’s a testament to both a strong script and terrific performances from the two leads.
Sam Landman plays divorced dad Pat, who’s having trouble adjusting to his new life after his marriage to Sophie (Virginia Newcomb) dissolved two years previously. His day gets off to a bad start when his dog eats his wallet, meaning that he is unable to pay sex worker Cindy (Elizabeth Guest), who has stayed the night after he booked her for The Girlfriend Experience.
Angering Cindy’s “manager” Chester (Benjamin Keepers) couldn’t have happened at a worse time, because Pat has to coach his young son’s school basketball game, and he already has enough to deal with in the form of angry mother Mary (Sari Lennick), unhinged rival coach Tom (Mike O’Gorman) and Sophie showing up to the game with her super rich nice guy new fiance Jeff (London Kim) in tow. Can Pat hold everything together and make it through the game before Chester arrives to get his money?
As played by Landman, Pat is what might be generally referred to as “a schlub”. He’s overweight, doesn’t take very good care of himself and an easy target for Tom’s bullying (they were former classmates), who refers to him as “Patty Melt”. However, Pat is both a good father and a good coach, and the way the film allows those things to reveal themselves is extremely charming.
The performances are excellent. Pat isn’t immediately likable, but Landman wins us over with a performance that really grows on you. Similarly, Newcomb is terrific as Sophie, and their relationship is extremely well written, smartly avoiding the usual clichés (e.g. the angry, bitter ex) in favour of something that is quietly moving and feels believable. A lot of that is to do with Newcomb and just the way she looks at Landman – all their exchanges are beautifully written and performed.
In addition to nailing the emotional drama and strong character comedy (both Tom and Mary are effectively highly exaggerated caricatures, but they are no less effective for that), Zuckerman is also alive to the pleasures of sports movies, and the final sequence is extremely satisfying.
In short, this is a charming little picture that successfully blends divorce comedy-drama and sports movie. If it wasn’t quite so sweary, it would work really well as a family movie too. Worth seeking out.
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