When Todd (Timm Sharp) introduces his girlfriend to his family, he sets off a domino chain of destruction that threatens the core of his relationship. Most of this is the result of his 40 year old developmentally delayed brother Shawn – or Shonzi (writer/director Linas Phillips), as he prefers to be called. Shonzi is an independent filmmaker, a lifelong devotee of The Fonz, a raging misogynist, a social liability, and a complete pain in the ass. He is horribly awkward in social situations, always saying the exact wrong thing at any given moment, argumentative, abrasive and horribly offensive around women.
To say there is friction between Todd and Shonzi is an understatement. Years of tension, buried frustrations, resentment and bitterness all come bubbling to the surface the second they are near one another. What begins as good-natured ribbing between the brothers quickly crosses the line of appropriateness and becomes something else entirely. The interactions aren’t openly hostile and are masked by humorous moments (often unintentional and ridiculous), but the tension is still noticeably present. Their relationship is damaged.
Todd’s girlfriend, Lindsay (Melanie Lynskey) is much more patient with Shonzi than Todd is. Actually, she’s a complete saint. Despite Shonzi’s constant come-ons, intrusions into their personal space, spying and utter lack of anything resembling respect, she is kind to him, and even tries to form a relationship built on adult trust and respect. She sees the conflict between the two brothers and understands that Shonzi’s behavior isn’t solely Shonzi’s fault. She wants to believe that with the right encouragement, he can learn to communicate better and form substantive relationships.
When their father suffers a heart attack and has to spend some time in the hospital, Todd and Lindsay offer to let Shonzi stay with them. Todd’s motivation is to keep Shonzi out of trouble, and Lindsay’s (ever the saint), is to help the brothers find common ground while also gently encouraging Shonzi to curb his offensive behaviors. What follows is a complicated relationship comedy that tests the boundaries of family, loyalty and respect.
RAINBOW TIME is a challenging film, which is both its strength and its weakness. It asks the audience to go a long way to empathize with Shonzi. It doesn’t present him as an inept teddy bear – he’s an asshole. He’s really unlikable; if you were in a room with him you would want to slap him. Or take out a restraining order. It really makes us work for the inevitable reconciliation that helps the brothers to meet on even ground, which is brave. But that work is difficult, and doesn’t feel as rewarding as we might want it to. It is hard to find that place and to want to feel even an ounce of sympathy for this character when we have seen him objectifying every woman in the film, including his teenage niece, and behaving like the most obnoxious child for the majority of the story. We understand that he is not necessarily malicious, but his intent is lacking in any conceivable empathy for the people around him. It’s hard to like Shonzi, even for the audience.
Phillips’ performance and writing really capture the childish bag of dicks that is Shonzi, and help us see precisely the frustrations that his family must contend with. He also makes Shonzi strangely vulnerable, in a way. Though it's difficult support the character when we are finally asked to do so, we do begin to get an inkling of exactly where all of this comes from and what it is meant to protect. And in that moment, we are able to find some empathy for the character. Not enough, perhaps, but some.
RAINBOW TIME is a dramedy that takes an unconventional approach to examining familial relationships. Rather than quirky and adorably harmless, we see damage, resentment and issues, all cast under an often-humorous light. At times though, the film asks for a little too much sympathy and doesn’t necessarily give us a satisfying reward in return. It’s a journey that is often as difficult for the audience as it is for the characters onscreen, but still one worth taking.
