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Gigantic

An Almost-There Indie

by Martin Malloy on Apr 10, 2009
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Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.

An indie film with Paul Dano and Zooey Deschanel sounds perfect, right? Well, unfortunately these two indie darlings can’t push this film to the top of the heap. But, as a first time effort by Director Matt Aselton it shows promise and a tendency for odd, quirky yet utterly original stories.

Gigantic follows Brian (Dano), a single, mattress store salesman in his mid 20s who’s adamant about adopting a baby from China. Dano plays the part well enough. He doesn’t have much to do with the character, the quintessential shy and quiet guy who doesn’t quit fit into this world, but nonetheless is quite the perfect guy. Those looking for a performance similar to There Will Be Blood will be disappointed, but it’s not a character that demands much attention.

Enter Happy (Deschanel), the daughter of an eccentric millionaire who buys thee most expensive mattresses on the market from Brian. Like Brian’s seemingly irrational desire to adopt a baby, Happy has her own distinct qualities. Her father (played by a hilariously, metrosexual John Goodman) is some sort of eccentric New York millionaire, and she seems to have fallen not so far from the tree. She jumps from job to job and from dream to dream, but her relationship with Brian forces her to finally take a hard look at where she’s headed.

It’s a story that examines not just young love, but what happens when you hit that milestone that is your mid-20s. Where do you go from there? Aselton explores it well through Brian’s strange want of a Chinese baby and Happy’s upbringing in a wealthy, new wave environment. It’s not a home run, but Dano and Deschanel rarely fail and newcomer Aselton comes out swinging with what could be a very promising career.



by Martin Malloy on Apr 10, 2009
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