I'm Reed Fish (2007)

A Masterpiece!

All that we are seeing on the screen is happening with real people, real action sequences in the background, forcing the eye to watch as if we were there.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

In Mud Meadows, a small community somewhere north of Texas, Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel) is a jack-of-all-trades radio broadcaster and DJ for the local and heavily followed station. The mayor (Katey Segal) is his sidekick and astrologist for the morning program. Also in Reed's future, is a wedding to the lovely Kate (Alexis Bledel), the daughter of the richest and most prolific businessman in town. The ceremony is only weeks away, with Kate and her mother making most of the decisions. Does Reed show some reluctance? He does, and it gets worse when a former flame, er, crush of Reed's comes back to town. Jill (Schuyler Fisk) is staying with her folks before entering law school. Still beautiful and available, Reed is thrown for a loop. Should he break things off with Kate and go after Jill? Does Jill even have any regard for him? Also, what about Reed's chosen profession, which he inherited from his local legend father? Is this really what Mr. Fish wants to do or does he have secret, other ambitions? This charming but odd film looks at life in a small town and its, sometimes, eccentric characters. The cast is wonderful, with Baruchel, Bledel, Segal, and all of the others doing nice work. Especially great is Fisk, who gets a chance to display her strong singing/songwriting talents as well as her acting chops. Why isn't this lady in more films? It's a puzzlement. The sets are a fun look at village locale while costumes, script, direction, and photography all come out ahead of the pack. Nevertheless, those who don't like the above description or romantic dramas, may not find it their cup of tea. But, if it sounds good to anyone, brew a pot and sip, watch, enjoy.

you will notice that there are a lot of people in this movie who are in other very good TV shows mainly. i do not feel betrayed that it isn't really a romantic comedy. or condemn it for trying to be post- modern in some techniques. i just want to know would it be so terrible to make this movie funny? or interesting in some way? you could use this film to clean your floors it is so dull. nothing happened!!!!the best thing you can do with this game is have a drinking game where people call out what movie or television show they know the actor from the screen and then everybody else has to drink.

i loved this movie. i thought it was charming and sweet. i just saw it yesterday. i was so upset that i had not heard of it before. my favorite quote was definitely from rex when he was apologizing for the way he acted when jill broke up with him.... "... or threw that hamburger at you." ha ha ha. i laughed so hard, it was grrreat.(i don't know if including a quote is considered a spoiler or not, i just didn't want my future comments discarded, how sad that would be!)by the way, does anyone know if schuyler fisk was actually singing?i fully intend to purchase the soundtrack as soon as i am able. it was one of the better ones i have heard. (juno being number one on my list of soundtrack fantastics) i loved this movie. i did not know anything about it going into the viewing process. therefore, i did not have any preconceived ideas as to what i thought would happen or what i hoped would happen. i didn't have any anticipation regarding the movie or any hype built up. to be honest, i really enjoyed viewing a movie this way. it helped me to form my own opinions about the plot and gave me the opportunity to experience it as one would if one would an actual character in the movie. i loved the twist in the middle. i was totally not expecting it. the movie was funny. the movie was off beat. the actors did a great job and were totally believable! a perfect ten.

Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel) hosts a radio call-in show whose audience is as loyal in spirit as it is infinitesimal in size. His listener-ship is comprised exclusively of the citizens of Mud Meadows, a small town discreetly nestled in the pine-encrusted mountains of Southern California (the movie was filmed in the scenic Big Bear area). Although he's come to be known as "The Voice of Mud Meadows" for keeping the town folk apprised on issues of concern to the local community, Fish really isn't all that happy with his life. He actually feels hemmed in by the restrictions of small town life and is beginning to have second thoughts about his impending marriage to a childhood friend, Kate (Alexis Bledel), whom he may be marrying more out of a sense of duty and obligation than out of genuine love or passion. His life gets even more complicated when Jill (Schuyler Fisk), a girl he once had a crush on, returns to Mud Meadows for the summer, stirring up old feelings in him and making him question even more the level of his commitment to Kate.Based on a semi-autobiographical story by none other than Reed Fish himself, "I'm Reed Fish" is an utterly beguiling indie comedy, overflowing with sweet sentiment, rueful humor and outstanding performances by Baruchel, Fisk, Bledel, Victor Rasuk, Katey Sagal and Chris Parnell, well known from his work on "Saturday Night Live." Not only are the characters themselves immensely charming and likable but their responses to the situations they find themselves in are believable and touching as well. "I'm Reed Fish," written by Fish and directed by Zackary Adler, is smart about the complexities of romantic relationships, and the movie is filled with any number of beautiful and lovely moments, the most transcendent being the one in which Jill (Fisk) literally lights up the screen with her musical performance at a local pub. As a writer, Fish is scrupulously fair to the characters he's created, avoiding the obvious temptation to paint Kate, in particular, as a fool or a harridan just so he can enhance Jill's virtues in the viewer's eyes. This equanimity makes the protagonist's romantic dilemma all that much more compelling and empathetic for the audience caught up in the story.As lagniappe, the writer has placed the story in an offbeat film-within-a-film framework that gives the movie an extra added kick at the end.