Deeply rooted in a specific place and mindset, writer and director Andrew David Paterson’s “American Flake” is an ultra low budget indie film shot in Eugene, Oregon. The story follows Gale (Oliver Austin), a charismatic small town drug dealer who avoids dealing with the death of his estranged mother by obsessively searching for a missing bag of his favorite potato chips. It’s an absurd premise that ultimately reveals a more serious story about grief, addiction, and emotional avoidance.
The film authentically it captures a certain facet of Pacific Northwest burnout culture. Paterson clearly understands the people and environment he’s portraying, and there are moments where the film’s observations about grief and self destruction feel genuinely insightful.
Unfortunately, much of the story feels like a short film stretched well beyond its natural length. The dialogue has a loose and meandering quality that’s clearly intentional, but it doesn’t always add up to something compelling. The film isn’t quite straight mumblecore, though it shares that genre’s affection for aimless conversations and everyday moments that aren’t all that interesting to an outside observer. A majority of the characters aren’t particularly interesting, and spending so much time following their day-to-day lives is very repetitive.
The central idea of taking the familiar stoner burnout archetype and uncovering the pain beneath it is a solid one. However, the film takes a long time to reach its most meaningful insights, and by then it will have already tested your patience. While the stoner humor, trippy visuals, and drug-fueled energy are sometimes fun, the material often feels too thin to support the runtime.
“American Flake” isn’t a bad film by any means. It’s an earnest, personal piece of indie filmmaking with a few sharp observations about loss and growing up. But its slow pace, wandering structure, and limited dramatic momentum make it more admirable than memorable. Fans of micro-budget regional cinema may find plenty to appreciate, but most viewers will likely find it a decent and forgettable one time watch rather than something they’ll ever want to revisit.
By: Louisa Moore
Screen Zealots 