Many independent comedies with similar themes end up being very slow with way more drama than comedy and no satisfying conclusion. This film, however, keeps a comedic edge all the way through with plenty of big laughs, while also maintaining enough emotional drama to keep us hoping that David finds what he's looking for. The climax and resolution are satisfying, though the climax felt like it may have come a bit too soon.
Every character is well defined with their own struggle and arc. David's two best friends, Timmy (Alex Wolff) and Peter (Michael Chen), are both hilarious. Timmy is struggling with his own delusions about a popular girl at school liking him when in reality she's just using him to do her math homework. Peter is overly cautious and accused of being a pussy throughout the film until he finally decides to take a big risk to help his friends. They're particularly funny when making decisions as the school Birder's Club, because they're incredibly official and always take the time for formalities despite the fact that they're just three friends.
Ellen (Katie Chang), a girl from the photography club at school, is convinced to join the boys on their trip after she catches them stealing a lens from the photography department. David teaches Ellen about birding throughout their trip, and the two come to like each other.
SPOILER ALERT!
The second act felt too short. It seemed like David and his friends weren't on their search for very long before the climax hit, largely because there weren't very many challenges or obstacles to overcome once they began their search. It's set up earlier in the story that before they embark on their trip, Ellen accidentally tells two other birders about the duck they're looking for, setting the main characters up for some possible competition. While those birders do appear again later, they don't really serve as antagonists throughout the second act who are trying to find the duck first, which would have created more tension and conflict throughout act two.
Lawrence Konrad (Ben Kingsley) finds the group during their search and ends up helping them. However, they weren't really in need of the help before he showed up and he didn't seem to be particularly helpful in the search. They end up spotting the duck a bit too easily, without anyone needing to do anything too special to find it. It would have been more rewarding if there had been more of a struggle to find it, and if the group had to use every bit of their combined birding knowledge.
Even after the climax is over and the main issue is resolved, there is still the issue of getting to David's father's wedding; but nothing was really made of their rush to get there in time. The potential conflict is even set up with David realizing that he has the rings for his father's wedding and needs to get there with them, but then right when they leave, the next shot is them arriving for the wedding on time without having made anything of the struggle to get there.
All in all, a fantastic and enjoyable film with plenty of laughs, fun characters, and a unique concept. There could have been more conflict throughout, and most problems were resolved too easily. Still, on a scale of 1-10, it was too enjoyable to give it anything less than an 8.
Every character is well defined with their own struggle and arc. David's two best friends, Timmy (Alex Wolff) and Peter (Michael Chen), are both hilarious. Timmy is struggling with his own delusions about a popular girl at school liking him when in reality she's just using him to do her math homework. Peter is overly cautious and accused of being a pussy throughout the film until he finally decides to take a big risk to help his friends. They're particularly funny when making decisions as the school Birder's Club, because they're incredibly official and always take the time for formalities despite the fact that they're just three friends.
Ellen (Katie Chang), a girl from the photography club at school, is convinced to join the boys on their trip after she catches them stealing a lens from the photography department. David teaches Ellen about birding throughout their trip, and the two come to like each other.
SPOILER ALERT!
The second act felt too short. It seemed like David and his friends weren't on their search for very long before the climax hit, largely because there weren't very many challenges or obstacles to overcome once they began their search. It's set up earlier in the story that before they embark on their trip, Ellen accidentally tells two other birders about the duck they're looking for, setting the main characters up for some possible competition. While those birders do appear again later, they don't really serve as antagonists throughout the second act who are trying to find the duck first, which would have created more tension and conflict throughout act two.
Lawrence Konrad (Ben Kingsley) finds the group during their search and ends up helping them. However, they weren't really in need of the help before he showed up and he didn't seem to be particularly helpful in the search. They end up spotting the duck a bit too easily, without anyone needing to do anything too special to find it. It would have been more rewarding if there had been more of a struggle to find it, and if the group had to use every bit of their combined birding knowledge.
Even after the climax is over and the main issue is resolved, there is still the issue of getting to David's father's wedding; but nothing was really made of their rush to get there in time. The potential conflict is even set up with David realizing that he has the rings for his father's wedding and needs to get there with them, but then right when they leave, the next shot is them arriving for the wedding on time without having made anything of the struggle to get there.
All in all, a fantastic and enjoyable film with plenty of laughs, fun characters, and a unique concept. There could have been more conflict throughout, and most problems were resolved too easily. Still, on a scale of 1-10, it was too enjoyable to give it anything less than an 8.
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