Killing Time

The producers describe it as a "Manhattan road movie," i.e., one without the car, and deadpan comedy Killing Time fits this billing very well. It's literally a day in the life of its broke-on-his-butt protagonist, Trevor Phelps, who, on the morning of his upper West Side job interview (which is to take place late that afternoon), finds himself on his friend's couch, homeless and rather short on cash. So he decides he'll just walk uptown. This simple odyssey reveals the anatomy of a life.

His quest is rather nonchalant, and Trevor's low-key demeanor serves him well as it takes him through a series of momentary encounters, some with friends that include reuniting with old flames and ex-classmates (most of whom are quite a bit more established in a world than he), some with strangers that are chance ordinary meetings so common to life in the city. As he moves uptown, we get to examine both a city and a young man with a rather surfacelike inspection that gradually resonates with meaning and, ultimately, a real emotive power.

Centered by a really charming lead performance by Jack Thyme, director/writer Anthony Jaswinski has created a movie that, though small in its origins, is full of significant insight and perceptions about life and a generation's muddled path through it. With a perfect ear for dialogue and character and a great eye for the sights and landmarks of New York City, this is a real charmer that radiates wit and a whimsical sentiment and eventually escorts us all through the seeming randomness of existence.