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Directed By
Kevin Palys
Written By:
Kevin Palys
Cast:
Jennifer Morrison, Jesse Spencer, Leighton Meester, Daniel Roebuck, Olivia Burnette, Connie Ray, Victoria Kelleher, Ian Brennan, Michael Novick, Aulani Rhea, Ernest Rhea
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Flourish (2006)
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Inside an institute for the mentally insane, Gabrielle recalls a twisting and turning tale involving a mysterious envelope and the parties that are trying to get to it or keep it hidden, which lead to the disappearance of a teenage girl, Lucy, that Gabrielle was supposed to be babysitting. Over the course of an evening, Gabrielle must deal with her roommate and fiance, a stolen car, a woman who she thinks is her landlord, and Lucy's parents. Dr. Kaufman, who is interviewing Lucy, tries to keep her on track, even though she seems more intent on looking smart for the camera recording her story, than actually getting through it.
Brought to the screen by first time director and writer Kevin Palys, FLOURISH reeks of a senior USC film student's final short film stretched out to ninety minutes, with way too much influence from video store rentals of indie cinema. Palys's concocts a series of plotlines and characters that weave in and out of each other in a forced coincidental manner, and opens up new plot points through out. Most of his characters are either unconvincing or just annoying, but it unclear if this should be placed more on Palys's screenplay or the actors chosen for the role. Palys's indecision about whether to make this a quirky character comedy or a tragic-laced drama about people who are one step away from completely losing touch with society and reality, also makes it difficult for the viewer to get into a dedicated mindset.
Jennifer Morrison, who will probably be most recognizable to fans of the television show House, portrays the lead Gabrielle. There is little sympathy for Gabrielle, and most of her actions throughout the movie are so far in outer space that one wonders how the character has made it this far in life. However, Morrison's strong point in the film is her physical performance of the jittery and almost delusional Gabrielle. Watching her subtle head and body snaps, her twitching fingers, and her darting eyes, Morrison's dedication and thought into the character does shines through, even if the character herself gets to be a bit grating on the nerves.
The tragedy of FLOURISH, is that the story setup and execution has some great potential and guided by a more experienced pen could have made a very interesting film. And by the time the "ta-da!" reveal at the end of the picture comes, which brings most of the film's events into sharp focus and should take the movie out on an engrossing high note to ponder, you simply don't care enough about what has been told up to that point to be interested that all the pieces are falling into place.
As a first outing for a feature length movie, Palys bites off a bit more than he can chew, and his inexperience is his own foil in executing a successful movie. There is certainly room for Palys to learn and grow as a filmmaker though, and he should learn from the process of making FLOURISH. Cinema goers who relish in knowing filmmakers before they were stars would do well to check out Palys's debut, as he seems destined to make a space for himself in independent cinema. Right now it may feel like a student film, but a retrospective look at FLOURISH once Palys has another film or two under his belt may prove to be a more fulfilling watch.
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