Waiting… | Two Word Heap

May 29th, 2006 | Tyler Hauser

Waiting…

Waiting… (2006)
Directed by Rob McKittrick
Runtime: 94 min
MPAA: Rated R for strong crude and sexual humor, pervasive language and some drug use.

It’s not very often I find myself both impressed and disappointed with a movie. In the case of “Waiting…” I am just that. I’m very impressed with what first-time director Rob McKittrick was able to pull off with a fairly top rate cast. My disappointment comes from the obvious struggle between the creative parties involved in the making of this film. Having 16 producers might have contributed.

At times “Waiting…” is trying to be an honest, amusing look at the world of waiting tables, while at other times it’s falling into flat-out, teen humour shtick in the vain of “American Pie”. Don’t get me wrong, “American Pie” is great for what it is but with “Waiting…”, I’d like to have seen more of the real life hilarity associated with terrible customers, new guys, and penis-showing games.

Ah, penis-showing games. You read right. I did, indeed, just make mention of one of the most inspired workplace games I’ve ever come across. Now, although something like this would be right at home in a movie like “American Pie”, I feel that it’s also right at home, nestled in it’s mother’s arms in “Waiting…”. It even acts as a rather integral part of the story. Well the thin, pointless, and quite uninteresting story of a 22 year old Dean (played by Justin Long) who’s suddenly concerned about his dead-end life due to the shocking news of a former classmate actually making it… in life.

Rob McKittrick, also the writer of “Waiting…”, could’ve gone two ways in writing this: He could’ve had a fully developed, thought-out story of a guy, in his early 20s, coming to grips with growing up, or he could’ve just dropped the story altogether and offered the audience a look at a day in the lives of a bunch of crazy characters working in a restaurant. Instead, we’re given a half-assed story we don’t care about mixed in with a bunch of crazy characters that we can identify with only on a superficial level. It pains me to have to sit down and watch something so empty and lifeless. Actually, what really pains me is that, combined with the lack of a grander vision, the whole thing is surprisingly well-written. More importantly, it’s wonderfully acted.

Rob has quite the knack, it seems, at both casting and directing his actors. It makes me giggle to see Monty (played by Ryan Reynolds) and Dean (Long) berating a timid and squirrelly Calvin (played by Robert Patrick Benedict) about how passive he is with the ladies. Easily one of my favourite scenes. The rest of the actors are great too. I think a lot of attention was paid to even the lesser characters, which is vital in a character-driven comedy. The actors did an excellent job of making their characters come to life. Actors like Chi McBride, David Koechner, and Luis Guzmán brought tons to the screen and added whole new dimensions to the experience. Plus, of course, there’s some good old Dane Cook action, which makes me giddy.

One thing that doesn’t make me giddy, however, is poor musical choices in a film. Sometimes magical, sometimes distracting, the music couldn’t seem to find it’s place. I found myself wanting a little more consistency. Changing from terrible rock music to the enchanting use of suspense/thriller music during the urinal scene, just demonstrates the absence of a unified goal in the whole score.

Again, some inconsistencies reared their ugly, little faces in the cinematography as well. Every so often, the film took on a documentary sort of feel (not ideal if the whole film isn’t approached in such a way). It was very minor but it knocked me off my game here and there. Otherwise, the style of shooting fit the film well and managed to convey some pretty nifty changes in mood i.e.. the change from the dinner rush to the aftermath.

I guess the movie had a difficult time coming to fruition, taking nearly 6 years to finally get made. My feeling is that if Rob McKittrick had a solid idea of what it meant to make a movie before laying the pen to his script, he would’ve turned more heads and got more people willing to invest in his film. With the way things turned out, it seems as though everyone was in it for different reasons. Everyone involved wanted something different out of this movie and, unfortunately, it shows.