Safety Not Guaranteed (on DVD)

Safety Not Guaranteed
[DVD Safety]

This is a wonderful, quirky, offbeat character study film, spun off of a real-life personal ad that appeared in print several years ago. Darius is a young female intern at a big Seattle magazine, who ends up on a field trip with one of the senior writers and a shy fellow intern, to research a human interest story. Someone in a backwater community placed a personal ad stating: "WANTED: Someone to go back in time with me. This is not a joke. You'll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED." After her writer-boss (who's using the trip for his own non-work-related reasons) alienates the man who wrote the personal ad (Kenneth), Darius ends up being the one to try to befriend the apparent nutjob and learn what his story is. Kenneth is an odd man, possibly a bit unstable. But Darius, herself is somewhat damaged goods, and as she pretends to become his potential time travel partner, they actually do bond. In a subplot, writer Jeff tries to reconnect with his youth by seeing an old girlfriend, and intern Arnau is forced to break out of his introverted shell. This is a slow-paced film, in which the best moments are often the quiet and introspective ones. I was never quite sure where it was ultimately going, but the journey along the way was fun. Actress Aubrey Plaza was marvelous as Darius, an emotionally-stunted twentysomething who slowly connects with the people around her. -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library [ see Scott's Reviewer Profile and more of his reviews ]

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ]

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