Film is a tricky business, it is comprised of a hallowed 5% of films which capture the hearts and mind of the public and go on to become a collection of films deemed to be ‘classics’. There are the Casablanca’s, The Godfather’s, The Star Wars’, each one of them a staple of our modern culture. Then there are the other 90%, the weekend busts and bombs, the formula films that drag us in just long enough to keep us buying 6 dollar popcorn and sipping on 4 dollar sodas. For the average viewer films fall strictly into these two catagories, it’s a black and white world. But, to the suprise of many people who look deeper into films, there is wide spectrum of greys to appease anyone.

In my column, which I hope to be publishing once a week, I will explore this ‘grey area’ as well as the occasional forays into new features films and the classics many may have passed up. My name is Greasegun, and I will be your guide in a world of bombs, gems, classics and just plain crap, enjoy.

Manic 8.8/10 Joseph Gorden-Levitt Don Cheadle Zooey Deschanel

  Manic is a film for anyone who ever wished that movies like The Breakfast Club dropped the sappy morals and actually showed what happens when people are forced to co-exist within a single place. Lyle (played suprisingly well by Third Rock from the Sun's Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a troubled youth who is sent to a the Northwood youth mental facility for beating another kid nearly to death with a baseball bat. Lyle's transistion to the facility is one of the more powerful scenes in the movie and makes it clear that no punches will be pulled during the film. Lyle finds himself in the care of Dr. David Monroe, played by Don Cheadle, who's superb and realistic acting account for at least 4 of the stars I gave this movie. Dr. Monroe is a kind and honest man who is not without problems of his own, as we see him popping various pills throughout the film. The bulk of the movie is of the group therapy sessions at Northwood, where the various other teens discuss their problems with each other and Dr. Munroe. These sessions are brilliantly acted and come off as realistic and disturbing at the same time. Some of the wards include Chad, a depressed cutter who soon befriends Lyle, and Tracy (Zooey Deschanel, most recently of 'Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy' fame) an extremely shy girl who seems to exhibit no outward mental condition other than that she wakes up at night screaming hysterically. While in these group sessions the focus shifts off of Lyle and allows the other characters to develop, creating a richer experience with each session. The entire movie is overshadowed by the constant cloud of mental illness experienced by all of the teens at the facility. You can never be sure when harsh words will turn into a bloody fist fight and the entire movie is enriched by this everpresent sense of dread that seeps into every line of dialouge. The fact that the movie is shot completely in a choppy, nervous, pseudo-documentarian style adds to this sense of realism and neurosis. Lyle soon finds himself making friends with Chad, and while sharing a clandestine joint, they agree to take Chad's forthcoming trust fund payments and move away to Amsterdam. This dream evolves into a metaphore for their freedom and brings a profound sadness with it. Another one of the most powerful scenes in the movie is when Chad is arguing with another teen that even though the theme of a certain painting may be freedom, it will always be confined to the frame. The entire film is peppered with these very poignant metaphores and yet they never become tiring or sappy. The movie ends with a silent epiphany so deep and profound that it requires no sudden look of realization on the actor's face or a muttered "I get it now" for it resonate through the screen and into your very soul.  Manic is a film I would reccomend to anyone, but especially to those who have ever been involved with depression or mental illness.

Note: This movie is both physically and mentally disturbing in many scenes and I would not reccomend it for the ‘fragile of conscience’.

I hope you guys enjoyed my review and feel free to send any comment, rants, raves or confabulations to emailthedirector@gmail.com

About the author: Aaron Bair is a young film student who write film reviews in his spare time. As you may have suspected, he is in fact that one tall guy who seems to sit in front of you every goddamn time you see a movie.

-45ACP