At the ripe age of fifteen, it’s
considered standard for adolescents to immerse themselves in destructive music
and authoritative rebellion; naturally dabbling in drugs and alcohol. What
makes Oscar Grubman (Aaron Stanford) unique isn’t his prodigal abilities to
quote Voltaire or frivolously debate philosophies with educated adults, but
rather his will to rebel against youth and all the brain-cell slaughtering it
entails. He’s not the average hormone-cloaked, contemporary pop music
obsessed, cheat-sheet jotting preppy, as is obvious by a virtually unimpressed
attitude towards anything lacking intellect. As one friend comments, “You’re
a forty-year old trapped in the body of a fifteen-year old”. Which should
account for Oscar’s intense infatuation with Eve (Sigourney Weaver), his
attractive stepmother in the entertainingly brief Tadpole.
What
begins as a film in the tradition of The Graduate quickly switches into something more
recyclable than significant. Its mere 77-minute running time doesn’t deduct
much of Tadpole’s impact, mainly due to a lack of one, but it doesn’t
help the story amount to anything other than an amusing, yet slightly
unbelievable, summer diversion. While most of the jokes are consistently funny, with
witty set-ups leading to hilarious scenarios, come closing credits and it’s as
though the story barely progressed since the get-go. We never fully understand
why Oscar loves his stepmother to the extent where the fact the she’s married
to his father is irrelevant. Unlike Miss Cross, Max
Fischer’s object of desire in Rushmore, Eve has no alluring aspects to
her other than a pair of “experienced hands”, which Oscar believes to be an
extension of a person’s intelligence.
Having
a bit much booze on his first night back home, Oscar unintentionally sleeps with
Eve’s chiropractic best friend of equal age, Diane (Bebe Neuwirth). Fearing
she’ll reveal their one-night affair to anyone, the brilliant sophomore must
use all his smarts in preventing this minor detour from interfering with his
plans. From here, Tadpole becomes a basic comedy, even briefly toying
with Freud’s well-known Oedipus Complex when Oscar’s best friend (Robert
Iler of HBO’s The Sopranos), in an attempt to bestow some helpful
advice, asks him whether he would still have the same feelings for Eve were she
a stranger in a restaurant and not his father’s wife.
Newcomer
Aaron Stanford plays the title role with confidence (even though he looks
nowhere near fifteen), easing our belief in this kid’s willingness to set
aside any urgent business, at the drop of a hat, when opportunity to discuss
philosophy presents itself. Credit
screenwriters Heather McGowan and Niels Mueller’s ability to craft humor out
of our protagonist’s naïve characteristics, giving this film its funniest
moments. Using quotes from Voltaire, often popping-up onscreen, as a means of
reflecting the protagonist’s emotions shows director Gary Winick’s decent
sense of humor. But the feathery-light film is nothing more than scenes that
lead to two or three jokes.
Shot
on digital-video, the photography looks murky even after Miramax purchased this
Sundance favorite for a hefty $6-million dollars. You’d think some of that
money would be spent focusing on a sharper image, but that is not evident on the
screen. At least the camerawork isn’t as shaky as some DV-features whose
production apparently couldn’t afford tripods. But this film is more concerned
with its characters’ interactions than beautifying the chilly Manhattan
background.
GRADE: B-
-Copyright 2002 by
Shaun
Sages