Visioneers

Visioneers (2008). Directed by Jared Drake. Written by Brandon Drake. With Zach Galifianakis, Judy Greer, and James LeGros. Music by Tim DeLaughter. Cinematography by Dino Parks.

I came across this movie thanks to the “Filmspotting” Podcast’s 265th Episode listing the Top 5 performances of the year. The guest critic, Ain’t It Cool New’s Capone AKA Steve Prokopy listed Zach Galifianakis’ performance in a small film called Visoneers as an honorable mention. Now, I was a fan of Zach Galifianakis’ work in the Comedians of Comedy and his solo DVD Live at the Purple Onion. And I knew he had starred in the ubiquitous R-rated Comedy of the summer The Hangover. But I had never heard of Visioneers. So I went to Netflix, queued it, and watched it this morning. And I was flabbergasted.

If I had I to quantify this film by describing it as an amalgam of other films, this is a mumblecore re-make of Brazil. As a self-respecting amateur film critic, I would normally be loath to do that, but I’m OK because that’s the best way I can describe this film. Visioneers and Brazil have similar plots and structures:

There is a competent but unfulfilled employee of an omnipresent corporation (Jonathan Pryce in Brazil and Galifianakis in Visioneers) who is living a suffocatingly monotonous life, and feels that he won’t be able to go on. Both of these protagonists goaded into an enlightened lifestyle by a combination of dreams, a mysterious woman who may or may not exist, and a Christ-figure (Robert De Niro in Brazil and James LeGros in Visioneers). Beyond that, there is little in common between the two films.

The main difference is the Drake Bros.’ style. It’s muted, very deliberately paced. Little camera movement, a lot of shot-reverse shot direction. The film spends a lot of time establishing and then following George’s day-to-day existence, putting the audience right in the tension George is feeling. This style brings across the quiet hopelessness of Galifianakis’ character. In Brazil, Gilliam’s faux-operatic style conveys the Quixotic hopefulness of his protagonist. That is what makes Visioneers an original film. It shows a similar story from a different perspective, a different place emotionally.

In Visioneers, George Washington Winsterhammerman, a third-level Visioneer (what that means is not explicitly defined) for Jeffers Corp., the “and friendliest and most profitable corporation in the history of all mankind.” People who are literally exploding surround George. They are exploding, presumably, due to cooped up ambition that must physically extradite itself from the body due to societal constrictions. George exhibits early symptoms of exploding, dreams (in which he is George Washington rallying the troops the evening prior to the Crossing of the Delaware), and a lack of sex drive towards his wife (Judy Greer). His brother arrives after quitting the Jeffers Corp., and garners a large following by pole-vaulting in George’s backyard. Charisma, a mysterious woman on the phone who has taken a personal interest in George disappears. And all the while, more and more people explode.

Galifianakis, whose comedy is quite verbose, has next to no lines in the film. He drifts from situation to situation silently. His performance conveys a long history of sadness and unfulfillment. And Judy Greer is hilarious as a wife obsessed with a self-help book.

And Tim DeLaughter’s score is great. The theme’s tone changes contextually from heartbreaking to rousing. Which is everything a musical score should be.

I give it a B+. It is too slow in the middle, otherwise it’d be an A film all the way.