Drawing Flies DVD with Jason Lee, Renï¿½e Humphrey, Jason Mewes (NR) +Movie Reviews

It's not as bad as all that

Alabaster Jones | earth | 04/11/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"unless you're talking about picture and sound quality, which in this case is the absolute worst i've seen on any dvd.. but apparently, they did the best with what they had. What we have here is an extremely bizarre half-story about a man losing his grasp on his mind, and how far his friends are willing to follow him into his madness. No, it doesn't always work.. no, the acting isn't always the best.. but it's a dvd i don't regret buying. Jason Lee, Carmen Lee, and Renee Humphrey turn in pretty good performances.. and even the stoner-eyed Mewes makes good with some on target delivery at times. View Askew fans will also get a chuckle out of seeing Scott Mosier in a diaper.. as well as Silent Bob's cameo, and the credits that state Silent Bob was played by himself.On the other hand, i'm not sure what this movie has to offer non View Askew fans.. if you're not a fan, you should probably pass on this one.. unless you feel like buying an EXTREMELY low budget indie film about stoners in the woods and sasquatch.In any case, this DVD is... enough to take a gamble on even if you're not sure about it."

More like two-and-a-half stars

fmwaalex | 03/03/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I couldn't quite tell if I liked this movie or not. Basically, it has its good points and its bad points. Obviously, the good points keep me from hating the movie, but its numerous bad points keep me from wholly recommending it . . .The good points: (1) Jason Lee is really good, as always. (2) For once, Jason Mewes plays a character who's not a complete stoner goofball, and he does a pretty good job of it. It's certainly interesting to see him doing something different. (3) If you're a ViewAskew fan, you'll like seeing some of the other ViewAskew regulars in roles of varying sizes. Renee Humphreys (from "Mallrats") has a starring role, and Joey Lauren Adams, Kevin Smith, and Scott Mosier all do cameos. (4) Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier's introduction to the movie is hilarious. (5) The movie is the first feature by Matthew Gissing and Malcolm Ingram, and it has a rough, black-and-white, "Clerks"-ish feel that's appealing. (6) The film does generate some suspense, and the ending has elements of mild surprise.The bad points: (1) Aside from the two Jasons, the performances are nothing spectacular. In particular, Carmen Llewellyn Lee (Jason Lee's then-wife) can barely act at all. (2) The movie uses a lot of obscenities, which ordinarily I don't have a problem with, but in this case I felt like they were substituting for real emotion and obscuring weak dialogue. (3) The plot is implausible. Jason Lee has visions that cause him to lead his friends on a quest into the wilds of British Columbia, but the visions themselves are so silly it's hard to believe anyone would take them seriously. (4) The action and setting are reminiscent of "The Blair Witch Project"--not the fault of the moviemakers since this film was finished well before that one came out. Still, you may get the feeling that you've seen this before.My local video store didn't have any DVD copies, so I was forced to rent the VHS cassette. I have no doubt that the audio commentary on the DVD is really interesting, and obviously fans of Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, ViewAskew, or all of the above (like me) will want to see this movie, or maybe even own it, regardless of its overall quality. It is great that Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier are supporting aspiring filmmakers. I just hope Gissing and Ingram have learned from this experience and make a better movie next time."

Charming

MiKe | 04/02/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"... I actually like it. I'm bordering on loving it, its only a matter of time and viewings. Maybe I'm just too big of a Jason Lee fan to not love this movie. In the first few minutes of was inclined to agree with my View Askew bretheren that it wasn't the greatest film ever made, but then Carmen started climbing over the welfare desk and I said "I've gotta watch this a little more". I'm glad I stuck around, very glad indeed. The second Jason started dancing with the Sasqautch, I said "this is one of the greatest movies ever!!" I don't know what it is, but that moment is hilarious. I nearly fell out of my chair. I'm serious. So, in short I finished watching it and I have come to like it more and more each time I have seen it. It has a certain inescapable charm. I don't care what anyone else says. If you like View Askew and you like Jason, you should, I repeat should, like this movie. I can't garauntee it. Rent it if you are in doubt. Its worth at least that."

ADMIT IT, THIS IS A BRILLIANT FILM

fmwaalex | Austin, TX USA | 01/29/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"VIEW ASKEW PRODUCTIONS

PRESENTS

DRAWING FLIES

Like almost everybody else I went out and bought this film based on the fact that it was a View Askew Production and starred Jason Lee. But unlike almost everyone else who has viewed this film I think that this movie is brilliant. I' am sure people who are reading this and have seen the film are gasping, but if you really sit down and watch the film for what it is I guarantee you will believe the same as me.

The story follows a group of friends who live in Canada and are all about to be kicked out of their apartment due to the fact that they have no jobs and are not granted welfare. Donner, who is the unofficial leader of the group decides he wants to go find Bigfoot or a sasquatch as he likes to point out. Knowing his friends will never go for it he decides to trick them into following him on this exhibition by saying his Uncle has a cabin in the woods that they can stay in. Since they will no longer have an apartment to live in they decide [some reluctantly] to accompany him on this trip. As they go deeper and deeper into the woods Donner starts to lose his grip on sanity and the group is even ran off by a group of men in large diapers. Az even falls from a tree and gets messed up pretty bad, and when his cut gets infected it becomes life threatening. So with no where to go once all is revealed the friends have a choice, stay with Donner as he slips into insanity or try and make their way back.

As with any View Askew film the performers for the film are familiar faces for the most part. All will recognize leading man Jason Lee in the role of Donner. As always Lee gives the best performance of the film delivering with quick comedy wit, while at the same time showing more of a dramatic turn when he starts to go crazy. I think that it is an interesting fact that this was the role that Kevin Smith saw Lee in and decided he would cast Lee in "Chasing Amy". Another familiar face turns up in Lee's ex wife Carmen, who delivers well as Cassady. Jason Mewes of "Jay" fame turns up as Az, Jason as usual is the biggest comic relief of the film. Renee Humphrey is also in this film, as well as a fresh face in the View Askew world Martin Brooks. Brooks surprised me as he turned in an excellent performance; I wish he would make more films. Also a great moment in the film occurs when Kevin Smith cameos as "Silent Bob" in the film and accidentally runs into Jason Mewes's character Az. After a brief quite second between the two as they look at each other, they move on as if it never happened. But the most brilliant thing about this film has to be Scott Mosier joining some other guys in the middle of the woods in nothing but a diaper. That has to be the greatest part of the movie, except maybe Lee's scenes where he admits what the trip is all about and gets in a fight with Cassady.

For a film that had an extremely low budget of 40,000 [if I' am not mistaken], this film even in black and white looks great. Brian Pearson did a pretty good job of making this film look as good as possible. And writer, producer, editor, directors Matt Gissing and Malcom Ingram did an excellent job with this film. The script had to have been great because this film turned out brilliant, if the Sci-Fi channel ever tried to make a film that would make Kevin Smith proud this would be it. Speaking of which, I' am so glad that Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier decided to back this film because it was definitely worth it in my eyes.

I would recommend this film to any and everybody out there who has a taste for films that are a little bit out there. Also be sure to check out the two commentaries on the film, the first by the Directors [that one is for all the technical behind the scenes stuff]. And the second featuring the directors, Smith, Mosier, Mewes, Lee, and others, that one of course is the livelier of the two.

"

More Askew than the normal View

fmwaalex | 07/02/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This movie has a great cast, you'll recognize SEVERAL View Askew regulars. The dialogue is interesting, the special features are informative, and the plot is just completely BIZARRE. I have watched it twice, so that has to say something...worth the buy for View Askew fans and supporters."

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