Hey folks, Harry here with a look at HAIKU TUNNEL which is apparently an OFFICE SPACE-styled comedy with nothing to do with Japanese culture at all. Hmmmmm.... Ok, so here ya go, beware of spoilers and take a look...
heeey aint-it-coolites...
in the off-chance anybody's interested, there's a great, small movie coming out soon called "Haiku Tunnel" that I had the pleasure of seeing earlier tonight. by that measure, I suppose I should say right away that the title is shockingly misleading... I mean, I ask you... what imagery does the name "Haiku Tunnel" bring to mind? a story about a modern Japanese immigrant, perhaps? or, I don't know... maybe something about a lonely poetry professor... anyway, it certainly doesn't call to mind this film, which is in fact a brilliant little comedy about an overweight, extremely affable office temp worker. basically, think "Office Space" without the angry agenda. in this film, there really aren't any enemies here (or "heavies" as the directors called them in their post-screening discussion here in San Francisco), save for the protagonist himself.
this is a film by two new filmmakers, Josh and Jacob Kornbluth. apparently, Haiku Tunnel made a bit of a splash at Sundance... enough to get picked up by Sony Pictures Classics, anyway. the film stars Josh Kornbluth as himself-- he's a forty-year-old office temp living in a filthy apartment in San Franclisco (not a typo) who listens to The Pixies on his way to work. he's a great temp... productive, eager-to-please-- the whole bit. when he is approached by his supervisor to go "perm" (permanent), though, things quickly turn south. he's five minutes late the next day... fifteen the day after that... etc. but, most notably, the 17 very-important letters his boss has requested he mail are-- by way of Josh's determined incompetence-- simply not getting mailed.
but with a movie like this, the plot is more or less negligable. the pleasure of this film comes directly from Josh Kornbluth himself. the film's genesis was in Kornbluth's one-man show of the same title, and it has made a pretty seamless transition to film. Kornbluth tells his story through a direct narrative device, much like that in High Fidelity. like High Fidelity, where this approach could easily have become stagey and boring, it actually allows for an immediate and personal connection with the audience. and Kornbluth is a very, very likable and enigmatic person with a refreshingly original sense of humor. there's one moment where he finally works up the nerve to ask out a fellow secretary, who happens to be black. she looks at him for a moment, then says something like "Josh... you're poor, you lack any direction or self-motivation, and you're white." to which he slurs, with expert comic timing, "hey... who you callin' white?"
like Office Space, the movie has lots of fun with Dilbert-style humor. for instance, there is a seminar (led by an unbilled Harry Shearer, interestingly enough) about what to do in the event of a paper jam (on the white board in the seminar, there is a note written in the corner reading "please do not rearrange the chairs). here, though, it all feels more personal than in Office Space, and the movie never applies blame to anybody for Josh's misfortunes. nevertheless, as Josh fucks himself over time and time again, to hilarious effect, we find ourselves wanting to see him finally succeed more and more.
visually, the movie isn't as dynamic as it might've been. shots are essentially motionless and simple, which is usually not a problem. there were some sequences, though, where I would've liked a little visual flourish, and I think a slightly more creative design would have benefited the off-kilter reality of this film.
still, the audience I was with loved every second of this film. funnier than anything this summer, this is the kind of movie where you actually find yourself wishing that this was a character you knew in real life. again, there is a warmth and innocence throughout that actually takes the viewer by surprise... which is a rare and welcome trait in any film. I urge everybody to seek this picture out, despite the bizarre title. you'll find it well -worth the price of admission.
if anybody thinks this is worth sharing in any way, I guess I could call myself--
J. Lyle
