“The Mimic”

Rating: 7/10

Director and Writer: Thomas F. Mazziotti

Style: Dark Comedy

Trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_nwNNRlxC8

Time: 1 hour, 22 minutes

Review by Mike Szymanski

This quirky dark comedy is reminiscent of a Wes Anderson film, with all the odd-ball characters. And, it’s also like a Todd Solondz film, but without the meanness.

Anderson, of “Rushmore,” “Asteroid City” and “The Royal Tenenbaums” fame, is also known for his larger-than-life characters put into unusual circumstances.

Solondz is a dark filmmaker who did “Welcome to the Dollhouse” and “Wiener-Dog” and is known for bringing together remarkable characters and putting them in odd circumstances and then being really cruel to them (I’ll never forgive him for “Wiener-Dog”). You can see a little bit of the surprising meanness in this, but it’s not as bad as a typical shocking Solondz film.

The beginning of the movie has a guy’s St. Bernard falling through the ceiling. No, the dog isn’t hurt.

But, there’s a 31-year-old guy known as “The Kid” who was in the attic doing cocaine, and is responsible for the damage. The Narrator is fascinated by The Kid and insists he’s a genuine sociopath.

This bizarre story is supposedly based on the true story of the director (who is also the writer), but there’s no other information about it except that he still does live in the same neighborhood as the movie’s inspiration does.

About halfway through the movie, there’s a jarring discussion between the writer and director. In actuality, the writer and director are the same, Thomas F. Mazziotti, and he is obviously supposed to be the Narrator, too. So, let the confusion ensue. Is the Narrator a crusty curmudgeon like the director is portrayed, or is he the young naive non-gendered writer arguing with him.

The Kid insists that he is on the same wavelength as the Narrator, and at one point they agree: “This is turning into a gay relationship without the sex.”

What’s disappointing is that there is very little pay-off to the back-and-forth quick-paced dialogue going on throughout. It’s an unsatisfying conclusion, but what a wild-and-crazy ride along the way. Some major questions are never answered, most importantly: “What just happened!?”

The relationship between the Narrator and the Kid is like that between a stranger and a sociopath. In fact, a real-life book: “The Sociopath Next Door” by Martha Stout is quoted at the beginning of the film and mentioned throughout the movie.

Some of the amazing supporting cast isn’t shown for very long. I was delighted to see Didi Conn in the cast because she was a favorite of mine since her role as the irrepressible beauty school dropout Frenchie in “Grease” and “Grease 2,” but also wonderful in a teen favorite “You Light up My Life.”

Then there’s Marilu Henner from “Taxi,” Gina Gershon from “Bound,” and Tammy Blanchard from “Into the Woods,” but none of them are in the film long enough to make any difference or use their talents to the full potential. In fact, they’re in one scene and then gone for the rest of the movie.

Gerson particularly plays a funny, over-sexed woman at a bar.

This is also one of the last appearances in a film by character actor Emmet Walsh (“Blood Simple,” “The Jerk”) and the final appearances of Jessica Walter (“Arrested Development,” “Play Misty for Me”) who both died since the film was made in 2020.

The two well-equipped leading men are the Narrator (Thomas Sadoski) and the Kid who may or may not be a sociopath (Jake Robinson). Both are incredibly handsome, both with very sexy eyes, and this project is a good showcase for their talents.

Robinson plays the role with a wide-eyed stare that becomes a bit unsettling. Is he crazy or devious or both?

The air freshener Febreze plays a major part in this story, and almost becomes a character in the film. It’s never really clear why.

This is the third feature film for Mazziotti and his first original screenplay.

The director/writer explains, “Well, it is based on an actual event. So, I remember when some of those things were happening in real life. How people around me, like in the restaurant scene, were reacting and watching. And I’m saying, ‘OK, what’s happening here is grabbing people’s attention.’ So, I kept to the way that was done that day live and just carried it over. But I figured, if people are listening then, they’re listening now.”

He claims the beginning of the movie is verbatim what really happened. “It wasn’t fun actually going through it,” the director recalls. “And writing for someone you dislike is very difficult.”

When the Kid stumbles across the movie script he is writing about him, he tells the Narrator: “You know that I’m making you much more interesting than you actually are.”

The Narrator’s obsessive idea that his neighbor is a sociopath takes them in complicated and ridiculous scenarios. They go on long walks down the street, experience a twisted dinner date, and take a ride in a car that goes terribly wrong.

The movie had its world premiere at the Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose in 2020.

The film is out on DVD and is available on all streaming services.

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