Tuesday, February 28, 2012

I Melt with You

I Melt with You is a mess. The film gathers four 40 year-old friends (Thomas JaneJeremy PivenRob LoweChristian McKay) together for a wild alcohol and drug-fueled reunion. Most of the film's first hour is little more than stars acting crazy, drinking and snorting everything in sight, and trying to hide how bad each of their lives has gotten from their old friends.

As unstructured and pointless the first 50-minutes are, the rest of the movie is worse. The film takes a dark, and bizarre, turn when one of the friends commits suicide the others gather together to hold to a pact they made when they were kids. They hide the body from a curious local cop (Carla Gugino) who has begun to snoop around due to reports of their wild partying, and agree to carry out the plans their dead friend put into motion.

It's impossible to care for the self-deluded bunch of assholes that are assembled here. The script does its best to strip anything likable from each of the actors in every frame of film.

I Melt with You might have some value as an acting exercise but the story, which needs to be compelling to be believed, becomes more laughable (but only in a depressingly unfunny kind of way) the longer we watch it being played out.

Released today on home video, both the Blu-ray and DVD include commentary with director Mark Pellington, Lowe, Piven, writer Glenn Porter and cinematographer Eric Schmidt. Also included are an introduction by Pellington, deleted scenes, a photo gallery, the film's trailers, short behind-the-scenes featurettes on the making of the film, and interviews with Piven and Pellington.

[Magnolia Home Entertainment, Blu-ray $29.98 / DVD $26.98]

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