"I was getting overwhelmed with this overwhelming sense of overwhelming futility."

As James Cotton (screenwriter Patrick Carrico) stammers out his line, revealing what a sham his life has become, I realized just then what I was watching. Up until that point, the rapid cuts, non-linear storytelling, and overly deep attempts at dialogue, which seemed a little too serious, suddenly slid into the right spot that Carrico had been aiming for: harsh satire. Who else but James, tragic art history major dropout in a cheap suit, ill-fitting ironic tie and perfectly tousled hair, could use redundancy to such perfect effect?

In the beginning of the film, we voyeuristically peer in on James, half-hidden behind the veil of his shower curtain, as he furiously masturbates, fantasizing about a voluptuous French maid as she dildos herself to ecstasy. Completing the task at hand (rimshot), he gets dressed for work as his girlfriend, fresh out of bed in a yellow terry robe, plops her butt down on the toilet to urinate. I felt a pang of sympathy for James (although I much prefer nurses), already established his stagnation in his life with his girlfriend. He goes off to work at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, with a motley crew of coworkers that include closeted lesbians, over enthusiastic managers, cokeheads in Bill Cosby sweaters, and the underhanded Claire (played by Claire Bromwell), who solicits tips from the patrons of the eponymous Coatroom as fuel for her "way out." James is assigned coatroom duty with Claire where he has to deal with her immoral scamming of museum patrons, as well as his blossoming feelings for her.

Indeed, Claire seems the antithesis to James' girlfriend Gallen (Emily Vernon), her sharp features and who-gives-a-fuck attitude are a stark contrast to the round-faced, responsible Gallen. In her defense, she seems less like a girlfriend to James, their sex life having withered away upon his revelation that he has dropped out of school, and more like a doting mother. Perhaps in the same way Claire has found her escape from her stagnant life in the coatroom, James has found the same in Claire?

But I'm getting ahead of myself here. James and Claire spend their nonlinear day together (if it's one thing I didn't care for in this movie, it's the editing) trading tales and interacting with a rogue's gallery of bizarre museum-goers. It's in these scenes that the movie starts to fall a little flat. We start to care enough about James and Claire that parading out hoary old stereotypes (the crazy old bag in a fur coat, the angry black man) for them to confront seems almost unnecessary. Their interaction and odd friendship/romance (Claire constantly refers to James as "Bob.") is certainly the best part of The Coatroom, as is James' internal conflict between childhood and adulthood.

The worst part? Aside from the unnecessary "caricatures" of the museum crowd, it would have to be the editing. There is no clear A-to-B structure, nor is there any sort of chronological context to help us assemble a timeline in our heads. Fantasies and realities merge together far too easily, leaving us wondering if he actually stands up to Gallen's attempt at making him grow up, or if he decides to continue his charade with her to keep his life comfortable and safe. I understand the artistic reasoning behind decisions like these, but they still don't help make the film accessible to the viewer which is ultimately the point of film. As artistic as you want to make it, as much as its your vision, sometimes you need to reel it in a little for viewer appreciation.

Shot on DV, The Coatroom looks damn good. It's clean and glossy without seeming too much so, with solid colors and a sharp picture. Dialogue is easily understood and perfectly mixed with the background music, a collection of raw indie rock tunes that fit the movie perfectly. Good stuff.

Visiting the website for The Coatroom, there is an entire section on the site devoted to rejection letters from film festivals (as well as a harsh review from a journalist who apparently loved Malibu's Most Wanted), laid bare for all to see. It's too bad really, as despite its flaws, The Coatroom is still quite enjoyable. Hopefully it will get the circulation that the cast and crew want and, to an extent, deserve.