Indie Gems: Buddy Boy

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Sheltered.
Francis (Aidan Gillen) is a sheltered 30 something man that's been living in a trashy apartment complex with his alcoholic step mother,  Sal. (Susan Tyrrell) He's taken to spying on his sexy neighbor, Gloria (Emmanuelle Seigner) and she unexpectedly starts taking a liking to him too. She tries to help him come out of his awkward, stuttering shell. Before all this, Francis only has his Catholicism to seek for solace, but now he's starting to question God, and Gloria too for that matter.

I can't for the life of me remember who recommended Buddy Boy to me. (Forgive me, I still love you!) It showed up on list someone made, and I've had it in my Netflix queue ever since. I've only been familiar with Gillen through Game of Thrones, so seeing him in this different light was fascinating. I thought both him and Tyrrell gave very convincing and haunting performances. The film has plenty of twists and turns, yet still leaves much to the imagination. It's obvious Francis as suffered some serious trauma, so when we're going on this journey with him, sometimes even the viewer can't be sure if we're actually seeing the truth.
If you're looking for a creepy film that you may have missed, check this one out.

Grade: A-

Memorable Quote: "You think I don't know your secret? - Francis (Aidan Gillen)

Comments

  1. m.brownJanuary 17, 2014 at 12:21 PM

    Hmm... this might be my next watch. Sounds good, and thanks for the heads up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 17, 2014 at 2:16 PM

      I hope you like it more than Maniac. It's definitely a little out there.

      Delete
  2. msmariahJanuary 18, 2014 at 12:10 AM

    Hi, this is a definite Indie Gem. Never heard of it. It sounds like it would be worth a watch. What is he doing in the photo? Is he under a bed? I've really enjoyed reading through your blog. Following you now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 18, 2014 at 8:03 AM

      Thank you! Yes, he's hiding under a bed. Off to check out your blog(s) too!

      Delete
  3. momof3feistykidsJanuary 20, 2014 at 6:03 AM

    Great review, Brittani! I'm guessing it was my daughter (and co-blogger) who recommended this movie because it's one of her favorites, and I suspect not many people have heard of it. :-) It is definitely out there, but there were things I liked about it, including Aidan Gillen's performance.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 20, 2014 at 11:32 AM

      That must be it! Thank Sarah for me. It was driving me nuts that I couldn't remember where I saw it. Usually I make a note of who told me to watch what.

      Delete
  4. Sarah WJanuary 20, 2014 at 6:46 PM

    I love this movie! The perfect combination of haunting weirdness and absurdism. Aidan Gillen is wonderful as Francis, and the film is very relateable to someone who suffers from debilitating OCD like me (although Francis was somewhat Schizophrenic as well.) I felt Susan Tyrell trying somewhat too hard, and performing on a different wavelength that Gillen. I found it hard to believe that Gloria would actually pursue someone like Francis, but I fell in love with his character (merely a platonic love, alas.)

    What did you think of the ending.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJanuary 21, 2014 at 3:15 PM

      I liked that it left a lot to the imagination. I didn't realize there was a lot of debate online on whether Gloria WAS a cannibal. I thought it was pretty obvious Francis was hallucinating, and I just assumed he did so at the end as well. Or maybe he saw his own reflection and realized that he was losing it. What did you think?

      Delete

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