but after sharing a few beers
and drunkenly airing his grievances about how his employer
treats him, David quickly becomes
Spencer’s best buddy. Son Luke
(Meyer), a socially awkward teen,
warms to David after he deals
with some school bullies that have
been making his life hell. Daughter Anna (Monroe) thinks he’s a
dreamboat, especially after seeing
his ripped torso, but remains suspicious and begins to investigate
David’s claims.
In these digital times, it’s great
to see an analog movie like The
New Jersey Stage
Guest. There’s no CG, no green
screen, no camera moves that
defy physicality. It’s a film that
could have been shot 30 years
ago, and indeed feels like a genuine product of the eighties, much
more so than any of the several
recent movies set in that decade,
like Cold in July or Ping Pong
Summer, despite its contemporary
setting.
Wingard, like John Carpenter
and Howard Hawks before him,
employs a form of film-making
that’s invisible, and there are no
showy camera moves to distract
September 2014
pg 38