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Relaxer (film)

Relaxer
Directed byJoel Potrykus
Written byJoel Potrykus
Produced byAshley Young
Starring
CinematographyAdam J. Minnick
Edited byJoel Potrykus
Music byAlan Palomo
Production
companies
Distributed byOscilloscope Laboratories
Release date
  • March 9, 2018 (2018-03-09) (SXSW)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Relaxer is a 2018 American comedy film written and directed by Joel Potrykus.[1][2] It stars Joshua Burge, David Dastmalchian, Andre Hyland, Amari Cheatom, and Adina Howard.[3] Set in 1999, it tells the story of a man playing Pac-Man in a living room.[4] The film premiered at the South by Southwest on March 9, 2018.[5] At the 2018 Fantasia International Film Festival, Joshua Burge won the Best Actor award for his work in the film.[6][7] It was released in the United States on March 22, 2019.[8]

Plot

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In 1999, Cam (David Dastmalchian) gives his younger brother Abbie (Joshua Burge) an ultimate challenge. Abbie is not allowed to leave the couch until he goes beyond the level 256 of Pac-Man.

Cast

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Production

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The film was shot in the garage of a house owned by production designer Mike Saunders' parents.[4] It took four months to build the set.[4] The film's premise was inspired by Luis Buñuel's The Exterminating Angel.[4]

Release

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The film had its premiere at the South by Southwest on March 9, 2018.[5] It was also screened at the Fantasia International Film Festival,[9] the Traverse City Film Festival,[10] and the Vancouver International Film Festival.[11] It was released in the United States on March 22, 2019.[12]

Reception

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As of October 2021, the film holds a 68% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 34 reviews with an average rating of 6.8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Relaxer is bound to strike many viewers as unpleasant, but this thoroughly unique comedy will strike a chord with fans of defiantly unsettling cinema."[13] At Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 82 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[14]

Eric Kohn of IndieWire gave the film a grade of A, describing it as "a grotesque downward spiral, both hilarious and mesmerizing, but above all elevated by its insights into the depraved final gasp of the analog age."[15] Calum Marsh of The Village Voice stated that the film is "funnier, nastier, and more abrasive" than Joel Potrykus' 2014 film Buzzard.[16] Nick Allen of RogerEbert.com said, "through its precise filmmaking and whirlwind script about one loser who never gets off the couch, it's a magnetic, five-senses experience for slacker cinema."[9] John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter said, "the claustrophobic, one-set film clearly invites metaphorical readings — but its allegories will play best to viewers who can stomach the idea of spending eternity on a couch playing Nintendo."[17] Carson Lund of Slant Magazine gave the film 3.5 stars out of 4, calling it "a showcase for [Joshua] Burge and his exceptional features, from his beady eyes to slender frame."[18]

Joshua Burge won the Best Actor award at the 2018 Fantasia International Film Festival.[6][7]

References

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  1. ^ "Summer Movies 2018: Here's What's Coming Soon to Theaters". The New York Times. May 4, 2018. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  2. ^ "Relaxer". Sydney Underground Film Festival 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  3. ^ Thiessen, Brock (February 7, 2018). "Neon Indian Returns to Contribute Music to New Film 'Relaxer'". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on October 15, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d Kohn, Eric (June 27, 2018). "Joel Potrykus Passed on Directing a Sequel to 'Project X' to Make a Wacky Y2K Movie in a Garage". IndieWire. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  5. ^ a b "Relaxer". South by Southwest. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Fantasia 2018 Announces Award Winners!". Fantasia International Film Festival. July 24, 2018. Archived from the original on August 5, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  7. ^ a b Sherman, Jenn (July 24, 2018). "'Dans La Brume', 'Cam' among award winners at Fantasia 2018". Screen International. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  8. ^ Crust, Kevin; Cooper, Matthew (January 11, 2019). "Winter movie preview: 'Captain Marvel,' 'Miss Bala,' 'Dumbo' and nearly 200 more new releases". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 13, 2019. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  9. ^ a b Allen, Nick (July 18, 2018). "Fantasia 2018: Relaxer, Mega Time Squad, Room Laundering". RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on August 29, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  10. ^ Sharf, Zack (June 29, 2018). "Traverse City Film Festival 2018 Lineup: Michael Moore Brings 'RBG,' 'Support the Girls,' and More to Michigan". IndieWire. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  11. ^ Mack, Adrian (September 29, 2018). "Mangoshake, Pac-Man, and the glorious weirdos of VIFF". The Georgia Straight. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  12. ^ Colburn, Randall (March 8, 2019). "A Pac-Man marathon devolves into an existential hell in the Relaxer trailer". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  13. ^ "Relaxer". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on March 27, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  14. ^ "Relaxer". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 24, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  15. ^ Kohn, Eric (March 9, 2018). "Milk Vomit and 'Pac Man': Joel Potrykus' 'Relaxer' Is a Masterpiece of Depraved '90s Nostalgia — SXSW 2018 Review". IndieWire. Archived from the original on August 16, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  16. ^ Marsh, Calum (June 18, 2018). "BAMcinemaFest Asserts Itself — Once Again — as a Wellspring of Risk and Discovery". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  17. ^ DeFore, John (March 9, 2018). "'Relaxer': Film Review | SXSW 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 27, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  18. ^ Lund, Carson (June 28, 2018). "Relaxer". Slant Magazine. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
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