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Meme
USA 2018
produced by Carolyn Maher
directed by Sean Mannion
starring Sarah Schoofs, Shivantha Wijesinha, Lauren A. Kennedy, Kitty Ostapowicz, Rory Lipede, Chaz H. Cleveland, Matthew Addison, Tara Cioletti, June Dare, Alex Bone, Phillip Andry, Lauren Shaw, Jeremy Minagro, Corinne Fisher, Jamie Williford, Ismael Maldonado, Jeff Davis, Lars Fuchs, Ginny Leise, Myles Austin
written by Sean Mannion, music by Valerie Opielski, songs by Late Cambrian, Radiana, The Shondes, Kevin MacLeod, visual effects by Myles Austin
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Jennifer (Sarah Schoofs) and Tommy's (Shivantha Wijesinha) relationship
has seen better days - especially in the bedroom department it's just
lacking, and much to Jennifer's despair, as she wants to get more and more
adventurous, sexually, while Tommy isn't interested at all of late. Also,
their interests drift more and more apart: Basically, Tommy has become a
VHS enthusiast of late, something Jennifer can't understand since the
technology is long outdated, and when he tries to buy an old tape for a
shitload of money even though he know the movie's shit, it only leaves her
flabberghasted. Then though she finds a tape in his collection she quickly
becomes fascinated by, Meme, a weird mash-up tape that might or
might not have some higher meaning, but Jennifer is determined to find
that out. Eventually, Tommy admits to Jennifer he has had sex with
fellow tape collector Carrie (Kitty Ostapowicz), upon which Jennifer
leaves pretty much immediately, crashing on her best friend Lesley's
(Lauren A. Kennedy) couch, and the first few weeks, she just spends
drinking her sorrow away, enough to get Lesley worried. But to get her
life back on track, she eventually picks up investigating the mystery
behind Meme once more - and finds out its meaning might just be for
her to make her own mash-up tape, to give her life meaning again ... Now
in pure writing, Meme probably doesn't sound like much, just the
typical story of a relationship gone wrong - but it's the approach
writer/director Sean Mannion has chosen that makes all the difference,
mixing its rather down-to-earth basic plot with aspects of experimental
filmmaking, at times defying chronological storytelling, at time even
questioning what's real in the film and what's not. And all of this makes
the film a wonderful, at times otherworldly puzzle, held together by a
strong ensemble with Sarah Schoofs giving her all in the lead. Definitely
worth a watch!
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