Lance Around Orlando

The Funniest Film of the Festival So Far!

The 100 Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
This is a very funny film.

Sometimes, in this day and age, it’s difficult to find comedies that are really, really funny. This film delivers on so many levels; part slapstick, part smart and mostly whimsical. A 100 year old man who spends his lifetime loving to blow things up, is relegated to a nursing home. When he discovers he can climb out the window, he disappears from his birthday party and begins a serendipitous journey filled with good luck and timely interactions.

The audience is sent on a hilarious romp. As his adventures unwind, we’re treated to multiple flashbacks. In his younger days, the old man has encounters with everyone from Harry S. Truman, to The Manhattten Project (I told you he loves to blow things up,) Stalin, Reagan, Franco, Gorbachev, concentration camps, Faberge eggs, TNT and lots and lots of explosions. Reminiscent of Forrest Gump, this box of chocolates has wild moments of elephant murder (no, it’s not the elephant who gets killed) crated cadavers and an unexpected suitcase full of money that propels the action along.

This Swedish film, featuring Robert Gustafsson who has been dubbed, “The funniest man in Sweden,” has a wry wit and satirical genius that only a Swede could bring. It’s a trip worth taking.

Reactions From the Audience
Jerry says, “It was great. It was funny. Remember the movie Being There with Peter Sellers.  It was kinda like that.”

Three movie goers chime in with their opinions:

“It was great!”

“It was excellent!”

“It was fantastic, give it a five!”

Wayne Heller of Winter Park can hardly contain his enthusiasm. “Best film of the festival!” “Of this festival?” I ask. “One of the best ever!” he replies.

“Very, very good,” states John Drackett. “It was original. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. I’m a screenwriter. I’ve sold a screenplay and I’ve seen a lot of movies. I think it has potential to go moderately wide in general audiences. I write and I understand screenplays. This was an amazing film. It starts with the screenplay. It’s mostly the writing that makes this amazing. If you don’t have a good screenplay, you’re sunk from the beginning. If you do have a good screenplay, you can still screw it up.”

I ask John how many screenplays he’s written. “I’ve written three feature lengths,” he replies. I ask if any of them have been made into films. “Not made,” he admits, “But I made $30,000 on one, selling it about five or six years ago.” I wonder if there’s any chance his screenplay could still be developed. “Possibly, but it’s in a legal tangle,” he laments. “because of multiple owners and legal things that have nothing to do with me.” Referring back to the movie we just saw, he ends by saying, “And I’m also part Swedish so I have a fondness for Swedish things. My grandmother was Swedish.”

This entry was posted on April 16, 2015 at 4:14 am and is filed under Art Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.