Peter and Vandy: An Adventure into Indie Land

I had been on a misanthropic kick toward hipsters as of late, so in an attempt to temper that I decided to plunge into their world by watching an indie flick that was recommended to me through Netflix Instant. "Peter and Vandy" is a very short film (just over an hour) that has earned comparisons to the more mainstream 500 Days of Summer. Instead of breaking up in the end like in 500 Days of Summer, Pete and Vandy wind up getting back together. I liked how optimistic the ending was because it was unpretentious.

Peter and Vandy was neither good nor bad. It was so realistic that it was deeply unsettling and there were many raw scenes juxtaposed with warmer ones. Peter and Vandy was a memory narrative similar to La Vie En Rose, in that it had non-linear narrative structure composed of Peter and Vandy's collective memory. The dialogue was all realistic, save in the artsy part when they drifting apart from each other figuratively and mentioned having to walk to stores in the opposite direction (Peter even says "I'd walk with you, but I have to go the other way.") Peter was selfish, and Vandy was a little too good, and together they were very "Manhattan-urban-trendy-mildly-counter-culture." That was the part that tested my chagrin, but in the spirit of my adventure in watching this film, I really worked hard to suspend my irritation and wound up going along with the gamut of emotions in this film.

It's a brief but too perfect look at people who can too neatly work out their problems. On the other hand, it's very realistic that it's actually disturbing but winds up nicely. I liked the movie but I'd sooner watch Twilight. I never lied, I'm a mainstream junkie!