THE FLATS A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 2003 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): ** 1/2
THE FLATS, written and directed by Kelly and Tyler Requa, is a dialog-rich story with a strong sense of place that will remind you of DINER. Young adults talk constantly but don't do much more than bowling and drinking. If you're looking for action, THE FLATS isn't it, which is somewhat ironic given that its lead, Chad Lindberg, was in THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS, a movie about as far from THE FLATS as you can get.
Set in the farm lands of the state of Washington, the story is centered on the character of Harper (Lindberg), who is an obnoxious yet likeable alcoholic. A gregarious guy who has an easy time attracting women, he's usually drunk, morning, noon and night. After a prank goes awry and he shows up inebriated in front of the judge, he is sentenced to six months in a minimum security prison. The movie takes place during the eight days of freedom he has until his incarceration begins. His character is one that really gets under your skin at first, but, as you get to know him more, you find that, against your own better judgment, you begin to care about him. Maybe it's because you're thinking, "There but for the grace of God go I," or maybe it's because of the twinkle in his eye.
The story is about much more than just Harper, and I found myself wishing more than once that the writers had dialed his character back a bit and told us more about his friends. Luke (Sean Christensen), his very best friend, is a law student interning in a hellhole of a job in the prosecutor's office. He works day and frequently night in the basement of the courthouse rummaging through old files about some case involving a sewer. Luke's boss couldn't be any worse.
The most interesting supporting character is a Native American woman named Paige (Jade Herrera, TORTILLA SOUP). Although Luke believes that she is his girlfriend, Paige actually has eyes for Harper. Most screenwriters who have a shy and sweet character like Paige feel obligated to exploit the character by having some tragedy befall her but not the Requa brothers. They are happy to make the most of out of the small nuances in her character. These brothers show real promise as filmmakers. Expect to see more of them in the future whenever a studio is interested in a character-driven story.
THE FLATS runs 1:42. It is not rated but would be an R for some language, sex and violence and would be acceptable for most teenagers.
The film is being shown as part of San Jose's Cinequest Film Festival (www.Cinequest.org), which runs February 27 to March 9, 2003.
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