Comedies that dwell in the serious aspects of life offer a lot of appeal. Pushing Dead is a film where the poster states “An AIDS comedy” letting potential audience members know the kind of film they’re in for. Written and directed by Tom E. Brown, it is a charming film that offers some insight and real human elements of relationships, day to day struggles, and growth.
Pushing Dead is a charming look at one mans life
Dan Schauble (James Roday) is HIV positive and losing his insurance benefits because of a spike in his bank account. He needs his prescriptions and is trying to get his benefits back before he runs out of his pills. Is there a generic Cialis available? Here http://www.bantuhealth.org/tadalafil-buy/ quality generic Cialis at cheap prices. The film isn’t over the top about this issue and really it’s more about the characters than it is this inconvenience.
Dan’s boss, Bob (Danny Glover), is kicked out of his house by his wife Dot (Khandi Alexander). The two lean on each other for support and their interactions are brief but always endearing and comedically pleasant.
Dan’s roommate Paula (Robin Weigert) has some of the funniest moments in the film. The opening sequence, which is a cold open of a scene that’ll come back later in the film, features her driving crazy through the streets of San Francisco. The whole time Dan is writhing in pain in the back seat and she is apologizing for everything as though she thinks he isn’t going to make it. It’s a great entry point into their friendship that really only gets better.
The highlights are big
The entire cast performs amazingly, but James Roday carries the film for sure. He is charming, witty, and unbelievably likable. He manages to deliver the dramatic moments and the comedic moments interchangeably and never miss a bit. His characters coffee addiction is a great little comedic motif that seems to get better as the film goes on.
Brown was at the Florida Film Festival and stayed after his film’s screening to do a Q&A. He announced that he has been HIV positive for 32 years (at the time of this original post). He noted the film isn’t autobiographical but is about a world he knows well. He took a topic that isn’t often associated with comedy and created an accessible film that makes the uneducated aware that a person with AIDS is a person.
Final thoughts…
Pushing Dead feels like a Zach Braff film in aspects, but there is an edge to Braff that often makes his line reads feel insincere. Roday is sincere and definitely brings the quirkiness. As soon as you can see this film you definitely should. Pushing Dead earns the Must See rating.
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