So I had wanted to see this film since it premiered at the Houston Worldfest Film Festival earlier this year however I didn’t get the chance to go. It has been getting good reviews since it’s first premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in 2009 and I finally got the chance due a limited theater release. The plot was unique enough and the cast appealing enough that it looked like it would be a good movie. It was also the directorial and writing debut for Derrick Borte.
The film follows a ‘family’ of sorts when they move into an affluent neighborhood and seem to have everything going for them, including all the latest products and furnishings. The house is ran by Demi Moore and David Duchovny plays Mr. Jones. Amber Heard and Ben Hollingsworth play their high school age children. Soon it’s revealed that they are actually no family at all but instead salespeople hired by a marketing company who have placed them in that house in order to introduce their products into the neighborhoods.
The plot was very unique and quirky and really made the movie memorable. With that being said, it wasn’t exactly believable although I think it was more symbolic of how materialism is rampant today. The characters were not very complex and were pretty one-dimensional but again it was more about the plot instead of the characters. The plot then took some un-natural turns and there was a love story element thrown in there, which made it entertaining however less believable. Overall though, it was a fun innovative story.
The movie was very beautiful and obviously the set decoration was awesome. It seems like the perfect set-up in order to get free set pieces in exchange for product placement from the prominent companies advertised in the movie. The costumes were beautiful and everything else as well but it had to be since the plot centered around them selling high-end products to consumers.
The actors were very pretty and believable in their roles. Amber Heard and Ben Hollingsworth were both given subplots which didn’t really seem believable with their characters, but it wasn’t distracting. Demi Moore did a good job and definitely can pull off a powerful business woman. David Duchovny also did a good job pulling off the naïve aloof Mr. Jones while looking sharp in all his costume changes.
Overall, it was very enjoyable and didn’t feel like a small time indie film. It obviously has a message about consumerism but it doesn’t become overbearing and dogmatic about it. It just provides a nicely entertaining and fun to watch film without getting too deep or complex. It was very unique with the whole plot of the movie and it makes it memorable. I think that Borte did a fantastic job for his first film. It was an entertaining film and I would recommend it to those who have the chance to see it however I wouldn’t go running to find it. “If you’ve met one Mr. Jones, you’ve met them all” -- The Joneses.
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