Time for a long overdue movie
review! This time I’m reviewing a smaller film that was missed by a lot of
people, Safety Not Guaranteed.
Directed
by Colin Trevorrow, a mainstream unknown who has found success making internet
independent films as well as writing for SNL, Safety is his first big
movie. The unique plot is the story of a
man who has posted a classified ad looking for a companion for a time traveling
adventure.
“Wanted: Somebody to go back in time with me. This is not a
joke. P.O. Box 322, Oakview CA 93022.
You’ll get paid after we get back. Must bring own weapons. Safety not
guaranteed. I have only done this once
before.”
Three
magazine employees use the story as an excuse to get out of town and set out to
find the person who posted the ad and find out his story. In charge of the trip is Jeff, played by Jake
Johnson (21 Jumpstreet), who is a full time writer for the magazine. Jeff is a
quick tongued, confident ladies man who wants to use the trip as an excuse to
get paid to go find the “one that got away” back home. He is accompanied by two
interns, Darius and Arnau. Arnau is
played by relative newcomer Karan Soni and he is the polar opposite of
Jeff. Shy and ackward with virginity
intact he seems to keep all of the other characters grounded with reality.
Darius is played by Aubrey Plaza (Scott Pilgrim Vs the World) and she is an
ambitious writer who is also on the trip to try and have a life experience.
While all three have a good amount of screen time, majority of the story
surrounds Darius and her journey. Plaza plays the role brilliantly and steals
almost every scene with her charm and wit.
They
track down the P.O. box and find it belongs to Kenneth, played by Mark Duplass (The
League). He is a quirky grocery store
employee who lives alone and has an obsession with how the universe works. Jeff attempts to befriend Kenneth by trying
to make him think he is responding to the ad and relies on his confidence to
trick the clerk into revealing his details for time traveling. However Kenneth proves to be too much for
Jeff to handle and he is immediately wary of him. Out of his element, Jeff convinces Darius to
step in and try to use her female wiles on Kenneth.
Darius befriends
Kenneth and they embark on the training and preparations required for the
“trip” while the two grow close. Most of
the story is drawn around Darius’s story of an emotionally lost or confused
young woman however it is driven by Kenneth.
He tells Darius very little about how he plans to travel through time or
how it works but as they get closer he starts to share why he wants to go back
and how it will change or “save” his life. The chemistry between the two is excellent;
they have an amazing way of making it seem really relatable. Meanwhile Jeff and
Arnau keep the subplot going while Jeff searches for his lost girl and at the
same time he helps Arnau out of his shell. The movie continues this way until
about two thirds in when Jeff uncovers some of Kenneth’s past and reveals that
he hasn’t been telling the truth and he is more than likely out of his mind. But
when “agents” start to follow Kenneth, Darius gets torn between her growing
feelings for Kenneth and his past, hurtling her into a tornado of emotions and
leading to an amazing ending that has to be experienced.
Cinematically
the movie is clean and well edited. For
a director’s freshman project its good but what really stands out is how he can
get emotion out of actors and onto the screen in a very real way. The characters behave more closely to real
people than to Hollywood characters yet still stay as engaging and entertaining
as a viewer demands. It should also be noted that Trevorrow has been tapped to
write and direct the upcoming Jurassic Park 4 movie. Aubrey Plaza steals the
show breaking out of her usual I’m angry and funny persona to reveal a much
more endearing and dynamic level of talent.
Mark Duplass plays Kenneth to a T. you spend the movie trying to decide
if he is crazy, brilliant or tragic. The ending is amazing. I cannot tell too much about the story itself
because I wouldn’t want to spoil anything but all of the events start building
up like a rollercoaster starting slowly up the first hill, building more and
more suspense and then once it climaxes it’s like the movie ends right when the
coaster flies down the drop but before the next hill leaving the viewer wanting
more but still thrilled. This is a must
see for film fans. It has so many elements that keep it going, comedy, drama,
suspense. It makes an excellent date
night or afternoon killer. Check it out.
