The Movie Nut

Directed by: Craig M. Saavedra Written by: Tom Nance

Starring: Michael Shulman, James LeGros, Enrico Colantoni, Brooke Nevin, Lacey Chabert, Tom Nance

Rated: Not rated (mild adult language, mild sexual innuendo) Running time: 97 minutes

Best suited for: story lovers, life lovers, movie lovers.

Least suited for: those new age cinematic gurus telling us that story and dialogue no longer matter

I was going to write this week about "I Love You, Man" (bawdy but likable) and "Duplicity" (predictable but likable), but then I was coerced into seeing "Sherman's Way," a small, independent film that was playing at the Westlake Twin.

"Sherman's Way" won the Audience Award at the Newport Film Festival, and director Craig Saavedra won at Jackson Hole, but, more importantly, my stepdaughter Kristin begged me to see the film, so I did.

Kristin knew the film's screenwriter, Tom Nance, who died in an accident in September. Nance graduated from Newbury Park High School and worked in Westlake Village, writing screenplays on the side. (See the Thousand Oaks Acorn, March 19.) Nance also appears in "Sherman's Way," playing a used car dealer. He lived to see the premiere of his film. For some, that's a life well- lived.

While it might seem easy to let sentiment cloud reality, for those of us who didn't know Tom Nance, 20 bucks is still 20 bucks, and a weekend's venture to the movies is still an expensive proposition. So telling you that "Sherman's Way" is a seriously wonderful, significant and poignant film, if it isn't, will only waste your money and flood my inbox with those nasty e-mails.

So all sentimentality aside.

In case you haven't noticed, indie filmmakers (and even some blockbuster engineers) have been trying a lot of new tricks lately, stretching the cinematic envelope—although sometimes in outlandish directions. Many times those new directions don't work for me. I call it the "Lost in Translation" syndrome—make it pretty, make it pouty, and people will come. Art-house junkies will be thrilled.

But is that what we want—we Branjolinaloving, popcornchomping, economically insecure mainstreamers who still want a relevant story from our 20-buck (40, with children; 80, with hungry children) investment?

Yes, sometimes those envelopepushers work. Sometimes ("The Diving Bell and the Butterfly," "Little Miss Sunshine," "The Visitor," "A Mighty Heart") they work very well. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes they win Academy Awards . . . but still don't work. I suspect a few recent cinematic emperors still have no clothes.

Because for me, the story still counts. Dialogue matters. Quirkiness has its place in cinema because it's all around us in real life. Sometimes it just takes a silver screen to show us its endearment, its perfectly nonsensical prevalence in our everyday existence.

Ah, yes—"Sherman's Way." About a self-possessed, overly mothered young man named Sherman (Michael Shulman), who manages to step out of his own controlled existence long enough to experience life for perhaps the first time. James LeGros plays the aging ski bum who takes Sherman into his own bumpy reality. It's a life-affirming story with wonderful dialogue, told with a gentle, easy gait.

If you're looking for similarities, think "Sideways." (No, not in plot, but in temperament.) Made 40 years ago—at the dawn of another cinematic awakening—it could have been "The Graduate." (Hey, even the sound track's good enough.) Yeah, "Sherman's Way" could be a tad more polished (although its budget was a shoestring), and perhaps that concern is a little conceited; we're living in a digital age where we're used to Hollywood's veneer. But how important is the sugarcoating? The heart and soul of "Sherman's Way" are exactly where they should be. And, to me, that means a pretty perfect film.

Kristin attended Tom Nance's funeral back in September in Chatsworth. Along the route, a ruptured fire hydrant redirected traffic. She found herself unexpectedly driving along Sherman Way. That's the type of diversion you'll find in "Sherman's Way." The way life's little coincidences and detours can seem unimportant—but can once in awhile be important. And that's the kind of film "Sherman's Way" is.

Its video release is slated for June. Make a note.