Part documentary, part loose narrative feature, this film from directors Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross, who also helped to write out the plot with Davey Ramsey, is a surprising gem. I started to suspect that I would really dislike it as things started to play out in the first 10 minutes or so, but I was eventually won over by the tenderness of the material and the poetic beauty of many of the visuals.
The main story is simple. 5 teenagers decide to go on a road trip. High school has ended, this could be their last chance for a big adventure together, and they eventually get themselves inited to a big beach party. They just have to travel many more miles to get there, something which becomes much more difficult when they have . . . transport issues.
The main cast members here are Makai Garza, Micah Bunch, Tony Aburto, Nichole Dukes, and Nathaly Garcia, all of them using their real names as they spend their time onscreen acting as natural and authentic as possible (and it's impossible to tell how much of it really IS acting, but all of them certainly get a chance to shine as they interact with the group and other wandering souls they encounter on their journey). The great thing about this movie, the luckiest thing, is that they all come across as decent and lovely individuals. They may be a bit too naïve at times, and it would be all too easy to dismiss their behaviour as a bit silly and entitled, but there is an earnestness to them that others seem to respond to. They are mirrors that somehow show people the reflection they always want to see when they get up every day to voyage once again through the real world.
Without wanting to sound too ridiculous, this is a brilliantly successful reinterpretation of the road movie. It sets it all up as a vibe piece, the music and imagery becoming more and more important as our leads try to ensure that this journey holds up as a life experience they will be able to cherish, and use as a life-jacket, for many years to come.
Most, if not all, road movies ultimately show a journey that is more important than a destination. The same applies here, and it doesn’t just apply to those onscreen. The world around us is burning, and those flames are fanned by the kind of people who would never take this kind of break from their path through life. The golden rule remains that those who have the gold set the rules. So it’s a joy to watch people being rewarded for rule-breaking. This reminds us all of how many constructs are jostling around us at any one time - family, society, financial - and shows that they don’t need to be insurmountable barriers to reshaping the world in whatever way you prefer.
I wasn’t sure that I would be able to tolerate these teens for the duration of the movie as I watched those first scenes. I was sad to be saying goodbye to them by the time the end credits rolled. And I felt grateful to have been allowed alongside them for such a rewarding journey.
8/10
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