SubUrbia Movie Review

It's a day in the life of SubUrbia, as seen by Eric Bogosian! How boring can its inhabitants be? You'll have 118 ennui-packed minutes to find out. The suburbs, at their best and at their worst, are always the cheapest shots and easiest targets in the world. Even with Richard Linklater at the helm, Bogosian's screenplay crawls at its own stagey pace. Kids hanging out at a convenience store, duh! Local boy makes good and meets them there so they can all squirm with loser-like envy, duh-squared! Guns are produced and lives threatened. Don't worry, this is cinematic SubUrbia, nothing ever happens there. Jayce Bartok is Pony, a nice, well-protected young rock star who's clueless about the effect he's having on his former friends and neighbors. Erica (Parker Posey) is the most congenial L.A. publicist on the planet. Sooze (Amie Carey) has aspirations to become an artist and hopes Pony and Erica can help her. Tim (Nicky Katt) is just as brilliant as anyone would be who sliced off a finger tip to get away from the Air Force. Nazeer and Pakeesa (Ajay Naidu and Samia Shoaib) run their 24-hour market accompanied by an endless barrage of racism. Jeff (Giovanni Ribisi) is never undepressed or unmiserable. He needs a good old boy like Buff (Steve Zahn) to cheer him out of his doldrums, although Buff never succeeds. And Bee-Bee (Dina Spybey) is an apple-cheeked alcoholic who drinks herself into a stupor whenever she gets the chance. One hundred and eighteen minutes with these charming people in the inviting atmosphere of a convenience store parking lot! When was the last time you spent 118 SECONDS there? Enjoy!

1996 (R) 118m/C Giovanni Ribisi, Steve Zahn, Nicky Katt, Jayce Bartok, Amie Carey, Dina Spybey, Parker Posey, Ajay Naidu, Samia Shoaib; D: Richard Linklater; W: Eric Bogosian; C: Lee Daniel. Nominations: Independent Spirit Awards ‘98: Best Supporting Actor (Naidu). VHS, Closed Caption