Whenever I find myself on the fence as to whether or not I liked and would recommend a film, usually DVD extras will give me that needed push one way or the other. If listening to the director talk about the film rubs me as, “this guy has no clue about good filmmaking,” I’ll finally understand why the film underwhelmed me and be satisfied, though disappointed, knowing that I officially wasted two hours of my life on the artistic vision of a clod. On the other hand, a smart, thoughtful, witty commentary will cause me to reassess the film and, though I may still not consider it to be great or anything to write home about, I’ll at least be able to say it was “alright” or “not bad.”
What did I learn from hearing first-time director/writer Steve Anderson in the “making of” feature on the Big Empty DVD? I learned some interesting tidbits, like the fact that Anderson expected to shoot the film originally just himself with some friends and therefore didn’t write anything into the script that he didn’t already own or know how/where to easily acquire. I also learned that Anderson wasn’t quite sure himself about the ending of the film and what really happened. He discusses the “mysterious” quality of the character known as “The Cowboy” without ever hinting at anything other than the fact that The Cowboy is really just mysterious for the sake of being mysterious. Hmmm.
A good aspect of The Big Empty is that, from the first shot to the last shot, you’ll find yourself never knowing what’s going to happen next. A bad aspect is that you’ll never be surprised by what happens next. The central character in the film is a struggling Hollywood actor who goes by the painfully unimaginative stage name John Person (Jon Favreau). One day, John is approached by a creepy neighbor (Bud Cort) and told he’s been chosen to deliver a blue suitcase to a man named The Cowboy in Baker, California and if he does this all John’s financial debts will be taken care of. If that’s not a heavy-handed catalyst for getting the story rolling, I don’t know what is. John then travels to Baker, a very small town on the road from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, and gets caught up in more than he bargained for, which mostly consists of A) quirky indie film clichés or B) events foreseen through not-so-subtle foreboding.
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