Meet Generation Rx. In a typical EDWARD SCISSORHANDS fashion, THE CHUMSCRUBBER shows a surrealistic small town where everyone is “happy” but darkness lurks just beneath the surface. Things start to go downhill when Dean Stiffle (Jamie Bell) accidentally wanders upon his best friend’s suicide. Lots of weirdness and self-reflection follows. The pills flow just as freely as the plethora of big name actors.

I didn’t think much of this film when I first viewed it, but I got to thinking about how much of the film’s statement rings true. I know a lot of people, including myself, that rely on drugs or medication to ease whatever “ailments” they might have and get them through life. To the credit of THE CHUMSCRUBBER, it brings to light our reliance on drugs to solve (or ignore) problems instead of face them. Yep, the message hit home, no matter how ridiculous the plot was. One of the main reasons I wanted to see the film is the large and diverse cast, all of which get some great roles. Most notable is Ralph Fiennes who is wonderfully insane in this movie, or is he? It doesn’t hurt seeing hottie Carrie-Anne Moss in a bikini or her jublies. There’s way too many other actors to note in this review like William Fichtner but the real break out star was Jamie Bell who you follow throughout the film as he realizes the weird state his town is in.

As much as I got this film, it doesn’t necessarily serve as fun entertainment. In fact, most people are going to hate it or just won’t care. That’s fine and THE CHUMSCRUBBER doesn’t have a large budget or widespread appeal. I think a majority of people will be put off by the film’s independent vibe or its seemingly pretentious message. Again, I wasn’t put off by either and rather enjoyed myself. At the end of the day, you’ll decide whether or not you want to see it or if you like it.

Video: The film is presented in 2.40:1 widescreen and looks pretty comparable. Colors and definition looked great. My only minor complaint is some noticeable compression and grain artifacts.

Audio: You’ve got two audio tracks- Dolby 5.1 and 2.0. The 5.1 track does a decent job for a mostly dialogue heavy film. There are moments where music will blow through on the sides or a ghost will appear really loud which is nice. Oh, and Phantom Planet’s cover rules.

Commentary by director Arie Posin and writer Zac Stanford: I really hate when a commentary is primarily reactionary. They just tell you what they see on the screen and drop a few additional comments. Dude, we can do that ourselves. Unless your Kevin Smith and or Jason Mewes just forget reaction commentary.

The Making of The Chumscrubber >> 12 min | While there is a bit of recap here, you get more useful info and answers to questions. This is great because it brought everything home about what was in the movie.

Deleted and Extended Scenes: A majority of these are useless but there are a couple cool scenes involving pill montages.

THE CHUMSCRUBBER will most likely be enjoyed by those into the independent scene or perhaps fans of P.T. Anderson films. There are no explosions but there is a decent underlying message and the film features a great ensemble cast. You might want to give it a try if dark dramas are your thing.

>>Final Decision: Rent if you like Independent