IN A WORLD -- my review

In a world of mind-numbing hollow big budget summer blockbusters and lackluster sequels, one little film dares to be sweet and funny and real.

I wish I had the big booming voice to do that last sentence justice, but you get the idea. IN A WORLD written, directed, and starring Lake Bell is the most enjoyable movie I’ve seen this summer.

In a world where Lena Dunham is overrated for her self conscious look-how-cool-I-am calculatingly shock dialogue, Lake Bell proves to be more real, more entertaining, and way more funny.

It seems you can write a comedy about young people without the humor emanating from self loathing, cruelty, sexual perversion, and humiliation. Who knew?

Since IN A WORLD is a movie about people who don’t fly, live in the next century, or are talking animals it is considered an “art” film. Hopefully it is showing in your town and not in the one shoebox theater that is usually reserved for Werner Herzog films.

IN A WORLD is set in the world of voiceover artists who do movie trailers. Yes, it’s a small niche, but even at five or six there are still more of them than vampires. And today we are so savvy about every aspect of show business that these artists who once toiled in anonymity now are known. The late Don LaFontaine (pictured: left), who actually did all the “In a world…” trailers, even appeared in his own Geico commercial. A longtime family friend was Dick Tufeld, who in the ‘50s and ‘60s was the voice of everything – from the Academy Awards to all the Disney trailers to a thousand national commercials. No one knew who he was. You might know him best as the voice of the robot on LOST IN SPACE. And before Dick Tufeld there was Art Gilmore.

Not that you should feel sorry for these basso profundos. Dan Ingram, the top disc jockey in New York on WABC for twenty years also did a ton of national voiceover spots. I asked once if it bothered him that no one outside of Gotham knew who he was, and he said, “When I walk out of a building I don’t want people saying ‘Hey, there’s Dan Ingram’, I want them saying, ‘Hey, who’s that guy getting into a Rolls’?”

Having come up through radio I’m happy to say I know a lot of voiceover people. Among them: Mark Elliott & Joe Cipriano (who were in the movie) and not to be a name dropper, but Lee Marshall who is the voice of Tony the Tiger. (Talk about a grrrrrrrrrrreat gig.).

The one note of the movie that didn’t ring totally true was that this was still an old boys club and women weren’t allowed. There are a number of successful women voiceover artists. For example, Randy Thomas, who was the first woman to announce the Academy Awards. Go to the William Morris website and you’ll see there are just as many women voiceover demos as men. But that’s quibbling. By the way, for a competitive cutthroat business, I’ve found voiceover people to be almost universally lovely people. If there’s any jealousy or resentment it’s from me because their damn voices are so much better than mine.

Although the movie is a satire on Hollywood, at its heart is a story about relationships, primarily between fathers and daughters.

In a world of Hollywood hokum relationships with two-dimensional characters and by-the-numbers focus-group approved unearned endings oozing with treacle, one film rings true.

Ms. Bell also proved to be a topnotch director getting spirited but nuanced performances out of her pitch perfect cast. Standouts were Rob Corddry, Alexandra Holden, Fred Melamed, and Eva Longoria was very convincing as herself.

In a world where character actors are relegated to occasional guest-starring roles on NCIS, one film dares to give them more than one scene.

Lake Bell is a terrific young talent. She has a great future in movies, or at least trailers.

In a world where pundits write snarky film reviews, one blogger dares to highly recommend a movie even though his quote will never be used in a poster.

Go see IN A WORLD. You’ll love it.