www.expectingmary.com/



This indie film is playing here locally, so on a whim I decided to see it. I didn't go in expecting much. It's quite a mixed experience. It's got twinges of Juno, and long stretches of Mixed Nuts, and a lick of Leaving Las Vegas. Basically, a teen runs away from home due to her appathetic parents' rejection of her impending pregnancy. Mary, said teen, refused to get the abortion that her parents demanded, and hitchhikes to California to live with her father (played by a rather offish Gene Simmons). Along the way, Mary ends up in a New Mexico trailer park and meets an ecclectic collection of societal rejects, burn-outs, and other riff raff. The tone of the movie drifts in and out of conciousness, and gets lost a few times in sidebars and moments of unnecessary character exposition. You might be expecting that the film involves a Christian overtone, what with the titular Mary and all. I'll just say that Christmas is involved, but there is no preaching or Bible thumping. It does have a rather sad ending, but it ends well for all involved.

Final words: If you love quirky independent films, this is for you. If you are looking for a cerebral, engaging experience, this is not for you. If you smoke peyote, and need a transcendental film to help you communicate with the spirits beyond, this is for you. All others, look elsewhere.

Things to watch for:

1. The worst Elvis impersonator ever
2. The Kaiyute Cuties
3. Endless pig jokes and references

Having gotten to work on some international sales artwork for this movie (not the above... or anywhere else I can find ), I can tell you they had the same classification problem as you. At various points, it was going to be branded as a giant fantasy adventure (maybe something like Big Fish), an ensemble drama/comedy (kind of Parenthood-esque), and the obvious go-to of Juno.

I'm disappointed that I haven't been able to see it yet, it seems pretty cute. (And it also seems like the kind of movie that has all sorts of little quirks I would have loved to have been able to reference in the art).

Does Elliot Gould have much of a role? I tend to like a lot of what he's in but couldn't figure out if he received top billing because of his status, alphabetical order, or actually being a central character.

Elliot Gould plays a truck driver that takes Mary to the trailer park. He is only in the first ten minutes of the movie.