Delirious

By: Martyn Pedler
Date: 24th Oct 07
Format: Cinema
Mood: Whimsical

What:
Delirious

Where:
Cinema Nova

When:
Opens Nov 1, with a special preview Oct 31, 7pm (see win)

Watch the trailer:
here

Win:
We have 50 double passes to give away. This is pretty much our own screening. Wooo! (We would love you to come, Martyn might even buy you a choc top.) Email win@threethousand.com.au with YOUR MAILING ADDRESS and the subject line ‘sweet fairytales for bitter hipsters'

Tom DiCillo made one of the ‘90s most canonical indie films: the great low-budget movie about the ego-driven horrors of low-budget movie-making, Living In Oblivion As Jim Jarmusch's ex-cinematographer, DiCillo seemed guaranteed to share in that same kind of laconical success... but only released a few forgettable straight-to-videos and mostly disappeared.

Now he's back with Delirious. A homeless young man (the wonderfully pouty indie wunderkind Michael Pitt), Britneyesque teen popstar (the wide-eyed and mostly-underweared Alison Lohman) and a lonely paparazzo (who else but Steve Buscemi?) have their lives interact in the predictably fateful ways that they always do in these kind of movies.

Despite some missteps, and a hamfisted, failed attempt to ratchet up drama in the final scene, Delirious is oddly lovable. It's refreshing to see a film about fame without the glut of obligatory celebrity cameos throughout. (When one slips through, it's disappointing.)

When the satire arrives in the last act, it's pretty limp, but that's to DiCillo's credit. He just doesn't have the bite for it. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, he never mistook cheap cynicism for wit. He's happy making these sweet fairytales for bitter hipsters.