Drones
DRONES is a love story mixed with a sci-fi element, with a heaping shovel of comedy piled on top. Co-directed by Amber Benson and Adam Busch, DRONES stars a bevy of people that are very recognizable from the stage and screens both large and small. Brian (Johnathan Woodward) is a office worker who falls for another cubicle dweller named Amy. With a little push from Brian’s best friend Clark (Samm Levine), he musters up the courage to ask Amy out on a date. Amy accepts (albeit reluctantly at first), and the two hit it off. Soon after Brian discovers that both Amy and Clark are aliens from another planet (two planets actually, they are two separate alien races, both bent on either enslaving, or destroying the planet). Brian’s week gets a little tense from that point forward when he and Amy have a little tiff that gets blown out of proportion, causing Amy to call in the cavalry and speed up Earth’s demise. Now Brian must come to terms with alien life in his workplace, repair his relationship, and save the planet from being blown up!
The cast is fantastic, with each character getting their little moment to shine. Great performances by Dave Allen, James Urbaniak, and Tangi Miller round out an already stellar cast. Each character plays off each other like they were improving the script rather than reciting lines from it. The chemistry between Brian and Clark is that of lifelong friends and even the romantic connection between Brian and the colder, calculating Amy works in a realistic manner.
Shot in pretty much one location through the entire film, DRONES does a great job of taking what they have and making it work for them in every frame. While there were a few lighting choices I took issue with, overall, the shots looked great, and the limited special effects weren’t overdone or too showy. The camerawork is pretty traditional, but that works for this movie. It is evident from frame one to the credits that this movie is all about the story and the characters and doesn’t have to rely on fancy camera moves or effects to keep the audience engaged.
Speaking of the writing, the script was penned by Ben Acker and Ben Blacker and feels like a more realistic (funny given the sci-fi twist) “Office Space” in tone. People talk like people and the movie doesn’t miss a beat, never leaving the audience mired in the story, instead letting them come along for a nice steady ride. One interesting aspect of the script is that, while it includes a little cursing here and there, unlike most movies it curses in context, and uses them as comedic punches and story points rather than having the characters uttering obscenities just to move to the next shot. There is an art to cursing, and Acker and Blacker are the Monet and Picasso of dirty words.
A great soundtrack featuring Common Rotation (director Adam Busch’s band), and original music by Jonathan Dinerstein rounds out this movie nicely. The music is light and complements the tone of the film nicely, and even ties into the dialogue at times. I’m looking forward to the upcoming release of the soundtrack for DRONES. The sound design overall was well done. Everything integrates nicely into the movie rather than feeling layered on top of the film.
This movie is just plain fun and has something for everyone. Whether a girl or guy, an office worker or orange picker, DRONES is a flick that can be picked up and enjoyed anytime or anywhere.
