Eight Days A Week
Rating: [Image][Image][Image][Image]
The Info
Directed by: Michael Davis Written by: Michael Davis Starring: Joshua Schaefer, Keri Russell, R.D. Robb Produced by: Martin Cutler, Michael Davis, Gary Preisler
The Basic Plot
A young man decides to spend an entire summer camped out on the lawn of the girl with whom he is in love.
The Review
The lengths that people will go for love are well-documented in film. The most recent example is Life Is Beautiful, the Roberto Benigni cryfest that won the hearts of millions of people last year. In it, Benigni goes to outrageous lengths to hide the horrors of the Holocaust from his young son. In Eight Days A Week, Peter (Schaefer) decides to show his love for Erica (Russell), the girl across the street, by spending an entire summer camped out on her lawn (the idea is passed onto him by his grandfather). As the weeks pass by, Josh reads several books about sex, watches the neighbours movements, and ponders how best to stand up to Erica's bully boyfriend Nick.
This is not a great film. It is painfully obvious to any viewer with a brain that Josh will win over Erica in the end. He is simply too perfect and nice of a character not to. It is also obvious that Erica's wooing won't happen overnight, and that the filmmakers are going to make Josh and his buddy Matt have a lot of silly conversations about sex, masturbation and any pop reference they can think of. The script's style could be called Clerks-lite. Matt is so similar in style, looks and demeanour that he could easily be the brother of Jay from Clerks; I kept expecting Jay's partner Silent Bob to show up.
This film likely would never have made it to the video store were it not for the current success of its star Keri Russell in her teen angst TV hit Felicity. Russell really has little to do here except look good (if slightly anorexic) in a wet T-shirt and hold the occasionally moonlit chat with Josh about random things such as the best James Bond actor (Brosnan in my book). Her part, like every other part in the film, is poorly written and undeveloped. Josh may observe many things from his grassy vantage point, but he is the same nerdy, chatty guy by the end that he is in the beginning.
Writer/director Michael Davis has chosen a very hard film style to make here: a talky film where the scene never changes. The example that cones instantly to mind is My Dinner With Andre. The entire film is set at a table during dinner, essentially one long conversation. The film, for filmgoers who don't require explosions and ka-booms every second scene, is an intelligent, witty delight. Eight Days A Week, however, is a bore. The camera almost never leaves Josh's side as he either sits, lays down on, or stands on Erica's lawn. Since the dialogue is dull and unfunny, you get very tired of hearing Josh speak. Frankly, by the time josh and Erica finally kissed (as you know they eventually do) I was relieved, since it meant the film was probably over. Only die-hard Keri Russell fans should attempt to watch this amateur piece of work.
Tim Chandler
email me at timbit@canada.com and check out my other reviews at The Bottom Line http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Heights/8000/index.html
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