Director: Sebastián Silva
MPAA Rating: NR
Film Pulse Score: 4/10
We’ve all met someone or know someone who is, for lack of a better word, an asshole. Whether it’s because of how they treat people, a greater than thou attitude, a know-it-all demeanor, an inflated opinion of themselves and the list can go on and on. Do these people even realize they’re being a bunch of douches? Why do we even tolerate having them around? Who invited them to this party? Why should I care about what they want or think? Bottom line is why would I want to waste my time with them. Hindsight is 20/20 and after seeing Sebastian Silva’s Crystal Fairy you’ll wish you had skipped it.
In Jason Reitman’s dramatic/comedy Young Adult, Charlize Theron starred as Mavis Gary. She was a complete, unrepentant bitch. Despite this you couldn’t complete hate her. You appreciate that she embraces how she is. The two leads in Crystal Fairy, played by Michael Cera and Gaby Hoffmann, are both unsavory types that you most likely won’t care about and will likely care even less as the film progresses. Jamie, played by Cera, is only interested in getting stoned. It’s his only interest. While in Chile he’s able to convince his “friends” to go with him to find a particular type of cactus to create the ultimate hallucinogen. While at a party he has a run in with Crystal Fairy, played by Hoffmann, a free-spirited, flower child, hippie. Her antics are so over the top to the point of annoyance. Jaime invites her to join them on their road trip, wholeheartedly believing she wouldn’t come. Well, surprise she does and comedy, or at least some attempt at, ensues.
The three friends, who are brothers, obviously don’t care for Jamie yet they still bring him along on their trip. There seemed to be no point to it other than to provide comic relief. Jamie’s whole deal is the drug and when they have the opportunity to take it they don’t or at least fake that they do. Instead they let Jamie take it and pretty much mock him in the process. What a great group of people. The brothers are supportive of Crystal Fairy when she arrives. Admonishing Jamie for his attitude towards her and embrace her for all she is or not. Hoffmann will likely get the “bold performance” moniker because she does full, au natural, haven’t shaved in quite some time, frontal. Crystal Fairy does things that are hypocritical and overtly stagey that the whole character comes off as a fake. Even during a big emotional scene that I imagine was suppose to be revelatory felt like mere crocodile tears. Why should we care?
Perhaps the whole point of this film is to show just how ugly people can be even the “nice” ones. Cera’s character is so off putting that you’ll tune out. Hoffman’s character is so annoying you’ll want to tune out. The three brothers are a bunch of manipulators. Once it finally ends you don’t believe anybody has learned anything or has changed in any way except perhaps for the viewer who realized that they just spent ninety minutes hanging with a bunch of assholes. Good times, indeed. Not.
