The World's Tastiest Pie
by Flick Chick Vique
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Waitress serves up 4 Red Vines for mmm... mmm, good! |
It’s an out of the way place. An unassuming little diner, down the road a spell. And though it doesn’t look like much from the outside, inside are treats surely cooked by angels, they are so heavenly.
This description fits the eatery in Waitress as much as it does the movie itself. Waitress is an independent gem you might not have heard of yet. But word is spreading like a grease fire about this little movie that could. Much like last year’s Little Miss Sunshine, Waitress is on the fast track to become the latest Indie flick to rival the summer blockbusters.
Keri Russell has grown up a lot since her Felicity days but her popularity with fans will kick into overdrive with her starring role in Waitress. In the film, her character not only waits on customers at Joe’s Pie Diner, she is one of the establishment's premier pie makers. But she doesn’t make the ordinary. Instead she combines the extraordinary to concoct creations in crust never before heard of. Inspired by her daily trials and tribulations, she makes up pies on the spot with whimsical names like ‘I Can’t Have No Affair Because It’s Wrong And I Don’t Want Earl To Kill Me Pie ’- hold the banana. As a bored, abused pregnant woman who finds romance in the most unlikely of places, Russell shines. This is the kind of part any actress would fight tooth and nail for. With any luck, award nominations await Ms. Russell. She is simply wonderful.
But though Keri Russell is the center of attention, she is surrounded by an incredible cast of talented actors playing the colorful characters in this Southern hamlet. Nathan Fillion (Drive, Miss Match, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) excels as Russell’s OB-GYN with more than a passing interest in his new patient.
Jeremy Sisto (Kidnapped, 6 Feet Under) is amazing as Russell’s abusive, crybaby husband. You want to hate him yet he manages to scare you and make you laugh all within the same scene.
Then there’s Eddie Jemison as a would-be suitor to one of Russell’s co-workers. His perfectly realized characterization is a priceless riot.
A noticeable ripple ran through the audience when the diner’s owner and toughest customer made his first appearance. ‘Joe’ of Joe’s Pie Diner is none other than TV icon, Andy Griffith! He plays a cantankerous old cuss, with very particular demands and little patience. But like many meanies, he has a soft heart at his center and we are treated to some of his homespun philosophy before the film’s end. No one has ever, or will ever do that better than Andy Griffith. It is an absolute joy to see him on the big screen!
Rounding out the cast are Lew Temple as Russell’s boss and Cheryl Hines as another waitress. They are equally entertaining.
That leaves me with only one other talent to share with you: that of the third waitress in this diner’s trio, Dawn, played by Adrienne Shelly. Shelly is totally endearing as the lonely, good-hearted girl. Her comedic timing is right on cue, as is her touch of sadness. But Adrienne Shelly was so much more than a super talented actress. She’s the ‘brains’ behind this organization, as she was also the writer and director!
It breaks my heart to tell you that Adrienne Shelly was murdered in November. Her body was found hanging by a bed sheet from a shower rod. At first her death was ruled a suicide. But days later an Ecuadorian illegal immigrant confessed to slaying the actress after she had complained about the noise he was making on his construction job in the apartment below hers.
Shelly spent years knocking around in the Indie business as a triple threat. Waitress was to have been her crowning glory-and it will be, only post-mortem. Waitress is a joyous movie, a very empowering movie that celebrates a woman’s independent spirit. From all appearances it is a perfect reflection of Adrienne Shelly. That she should be cut down when she was just hitting her stride is not only a tremendous loss for her family, friends and coworkers, it is a tragedy for all women. We have lost a voice that was just starting to be heard.
I cannot recommend Waitress to you highly enough. One taste of this quirky, tasty pie and you’ll be going back for a second slice.
Did you see it?
Tell us what you thought of it!
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