I think the one thing that makes me love movies are the feelings that they can make you feel. Rarely in this day-and-age where blockbusters rule the theatres (don’t get me wrong, I love a great action sequence) do moviegoers find a film where they can really feel for the characters that are playing out life on screen. In a new summer tradition, I called up my friend for our weekly Tuesday “bucket night” date at the Bev and we decided to catch the new Keri Russell flick Waitress; and I have to say, I’m glad we did. Adrienne Shelly (Revolution #9) wrote, directed and acted in this, her final film before she was tragically murdered in November of last year. The film follows Jenna (Keri Russell - Felicity) who works in a restaurant creating and serving up pies (like the “I hate my husband” pie). She is in a marriage to a man named Earl (Jeremy Sisto - Six Feet Under) whom she does not love and controls her every move. Right away Jenna finds out she is pregnant and she is very adamant about how unhappy she is about this pregnancy. Jenna’s pregnancy leads her to Dr. Pomatter (Nathan Fillion - Drive, Firefly) who she begins to have an affair with. Through her affair with Dr. Pomatter, her friends (Adrienne Shelly and Cheryl Hines), the lovable grumpy old man Joe (Andy Griffith), and especially the birth of her baby, Jenna learns to appreciate herself and finds out who the true love of her life is. Before you go off thinking this is a sappy love story, I can safely say that it is; but not in the conventional way. Throughout the film, Jenna is upset about having a baby because she looks at it as a burden, as an attachment to the life and the husband that she wants to get away from. And without ruining the ending, the look that Jenna gives to her baby when the nurse puts her in her arms is one that just radiates love and emotion.

Now for you guys that are reading this thinking “Kendra, you are gonna make my girlfriend take me to another sappy movie” I can say yes it has it’s emotional points but it also has a whit and comedy to the writing and performance that makes the audience laugh out loud. The sarcasm that comes from the characters is something that many can appreciate and is also very real. While at times it can seem that some of the characters feelings are slightly exaggerated, there is such a real feel to the film and those “exaggerated emotions” that makes you appreciate each character, even the controlling Earl. Each character seems to have their own stories to tell that intertwine with each other throughout the film.

In memory of Adrienne Shelly; writer, director and actress; June 24, 1966 - November 1, 2006.

In an appearance today at Ebertfest following the screening of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, Roger Ebert spoke to the audience with the help of a computer program, which was donated for his use today by the University of Illinois and College of Communications Dean Ron Yates. Ebert spoke about the film he co-wrote with Russ Meyer, which was shown today as the conclusion to Ebertfest. Ebert admitted that he and co-writer Russ Meyer couldn’t keep a straight face through the writing of the film and said to sum up his emotions a line from BVD, “It’s my happening and it freaks me out!” which evoked laughter from the audience.

A disclaimer reading “This is not a sequel to Valley of the Dolls” was the first “joke” the audience viewing Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (or BVD) encountered Sunday afternoon. I myself, was not sure what to expect, not having seen the original Valley of the Dolls and honestly there to see the band Strawberry Alarm Clock (they played “Insence and Peppermints” ) perform. Even the introduction to the film, with it’s witty humor and inside jokes that only those who had seen the film understood, gave no inclination as to what I was about to see. What I saw, turned into a strange mix of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll, literally. Roger Ebert and Russ Meyer ( a “skin-flick auteur” ) created a film that instead of being a sequel to Valley of the Dolls, took every cliche from Hollywood and VotD and wrapped it up into one satirical package. As the offspring of two baby boomer’s (one of them an ex-hippie) I have grown up in a world of classic rock music; The Beatles, The Stones, etc; so to see a film in which an actual band (Strawberry Alarm Clock) is portraying the rock ‘n roll, and actually writing songs for a film that has to deal with said world, was a pleasant experience.

BVD’s plot, in the most basic form, is about a female rock group; Kelly, Casey and Pet; who decide to pack up and move to LA to find fame and riches. When reaching LA, they find Kelly’s famous fashion designer aunt Susan and get involved in her world of drugs, sex and rock ‘n roll. Without giving too much away, the girls each find their own sexual freedom and have to decide which side of innocence is worth having. The film seems to represent much of the time period from the clothing to the music to the idea of free love and happiness.

Meyer was one of the first to use the quick cuts in BVD that are seen in many films now a days and much of the comedy comes from the way the actors really seem to be taking the film and script so seriously. On top of the comedic feel to the film, is a post-modernist representation of some of the dialouge and scenes. For example, one of the ending sequences is frighteningly similar to the murders of the Manson family. Guest Marcia McBroom, who played Pet, urged the audience to laugh at such violent sequences, however, promising that they were meant for that purpose.

Audience members were also given a special performance from the Strawberry Alarm Clock which both wrote songs for and appeared in BVD. And although the band is definitely getting up there in age (some in their 70s) they still knew how to rock out!