To my great surprise, the new indie flick Brigsby Bear is one of my favorite flicks of the year. It’s produced by Sony Pictures Classics though the production title cards also includes “The Lonely Island Classics” as a kind of joke. This is produced by (but not starring) the Lonely Island bunch as well as Lord and Miller, the guys who made The Lego Movie and 21 Jump Street. It stars Kyle Mooney from SNL, co-stars Mark Hamill (!) and Greg Kinnear, and, yes, Andy Samburg has a cameo.
So what in hey is Brigsby Bear? I had no idea going in – it was a total blind watch… I only knew it was getting some good reviews. It was great to be blind-sided by whatever the flick is…
But if you must know, it’s about a 25 year old who has been living in an underground shelter his whole life because his parents have told him the air is toxic after some unspecified world-wide disaster. The guy spends his time watching what looks like an ’80s era puppet sci-fi kids show called Brigsby Bear (any similarity between Brigsby and Teddy Ruxpin are purely intentional). He chats with friends (other survivors) about the VHS show on his early 80s PC, has weird conversation with his parents, and gets to bed when the generator is turned off for the night.
Then he’s rescued by the cops who inform he was kidnapped as a baby, the air is not toxic, there was no disaster. He is returned to his real family only to find that Brisbgy Bear show was created by his fake parents and no one else has heard of it. He then discovers there are OTHER tv shows and even movies(!!!).
This film is so good-natured and so huggable, despite the theoretically grim kidnapping plot. The guy holds no grudges, hates no one, and assimilates back into society in an odd but believable yet unpredictable way. The character reminds me a lot of a less small-minded and judgmental Napoleon Dynamite… someone you might actually want to hang out with, even if he’s a little off.
He bonds with his new sister, makes friends with like-minded nerdy people, and decides to make the final Brigsby Bear movie with their help. The movie is a lovely story of friendship, family, and the creative spirit. I enjoyed this movie… I had joy watching this movie. And I grinned constantly. I often wanted to hug it for just being fun, funny, sweet, charming, and creative.
I’m not 100% sure everyone else will enjoy it so I’m hedging a little bit on an unqualified recommendation. It’s certainly worth trying and seeing if you can get into it. I suspect it’ll be hard to find at theaters but when it comes home, maybe look it up and give it a shot.
Score: 90