I suppose one could describe any bad or inept movie as surreal. In many cases you could even build up a solid case.
Here's a start for "Plan 9 From Outer Space" - In dreams the surrounding don't look or feel real. The people talk in strange tones and rhythms that have little resemblance to how people speak. Random images appear and become juxtaposed for no particular reason with other images. Entire scenarios appear out of nowhere and lead to nothing.
The things I said there all could be put to that thesis. All those things are true of both "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and the human dream cycle. Given the time, energy and desire, I could expand that theory into a full blown essay and probably even draw some deep symbolism out of the whole thing.
Does that mean I should start putting my Ed Wood DVDs next to my Luis Buñuel DVDs on the shelf?
I don't think so.
"Drawing Flies" is many things. Genuinely surreal, in any meaningful sense of the word, isn't one of them.
It is confused. It is tedious to sit through.
It's painful to watch the actors put in such a good show with so little material to back them up. Poor Jason Mewes has a part as a pretty non-"Jay" regular guy in this, and does a respectable job with it, all for naught, though, as his character does nothing of note through this piecemeal throwaway.
The cinematography is bland, but could be forgiven considering the budget and inexperience of the directors. Nothing can be said to forgive that editing, though. A monkey with a rusty camping knife and some rubber cement could have done a better job of editing.
As to the story, it switches between misguided sub-soap opera melodrama based around character relationships it never bothers to make clear enough to create empathy for and rather lame attempts to mimic Kevin Smith's humor style. Neither works on its own or as a companion to the other, leaving the movie flailing in the wind with nothing to do.
I wish everyone involved the best, I'm sure they're all groovy cats. I know the cast is. I just don't see any merit to this movie as a work of its own at all. Sloppy.
Here's a start for "Plan 9 From Outer Space" - In dreams the surrounding don't look or feel real. The people talk in strange tones and rhythms that have little resemblance to how people speak. Random images appear and become juxtaposed for no particular reason with other images. Entire scenarios appear out of nowhere and lead to nothing.
The things I said there all could be put to that thesis. All those things are true of both "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and the human dream cycle. Given the time, energy and desire, I could expand that theory into a full blown essay and probably even draw some deep symbolism out of the whole thing.
Does that mean I should start putting my Ed Wood DVDs next to my Luis Buñuel DVDs on the shelf?
I don't think so.
"Drawing Flies" is many things. Genuinely surreal, in any meaningful sense of the word, isn't one of them.
It is confused. It is tedious to sit through.
It's painful to watch the actors put in such a good show with so little material to back them up. Poor Jason Mewes has a part as a pretty non-"Jay" regular guy in this, and does a respectable job with it, all for naught, though, as his character does nothing of note through this piecemeal throwaway.
The cinematography is bland, but could be forgiven considering the budget and inexperience of the directors. Nothing can be said to forgive that editing, though. A monkey with a rusty camping knife and some rubber cement could have done a better job of editing.
As to the story, it switches between misguided sub-soap opera melodrama based around character relationships it never bothers to make clear enough to create empathy for and rather lame attempts to mimic Kevin Smith's humor style. Neither works on its own or as a companion to the other, leaving the movie flailing in the wind with nothing to do.
I wish everyone involved the best, I'm sure they're all groovy cats. I know the cast is. I just don't see any merit to this movie as a work of its own at all. Sloppy.