DAVE LEWIS' SPAGHETTI AND MATZO BALLS

Oh! The power of post production!

I went to the premiere screening of writer/producer/director (and sometimes actor) Dave Lewis' short comedy, SPAGHETTI AND MATZO BALLS, the other night in Arlington. I had read a draft of the script almost two years ago, and had seen a rough cut six months ago. And, I admit, I had reservations. But what I saw Saturday night was a genuinely likeable little film. When he told me that he spent eight months in post-production, I was impressed. And I knew it made a difference.

First, my reservations. When I entered the theatre, I knew that in spite of the giveaway title, that there was a potentially cute film with a somewhat predictable feel good ending. My earlier encounters were based on the fact that I found the humor too broad, somewhat redundant, and even a little too crude for my taste. I had found the Jewish-Italian, characters too stereotypical, even a little insulting. And the acting was uneven, the acting styles mismatched, and scenes stretched out too long.

Not that there weren't still some of these problems in the cut the other night. But with scenes trimmed and some of the joke motifs reduced and less redundant, I was not bothered. The rough cut I had seen was over 30 minutes; this one was 23, and I'm told, might be trimmed some more. The masturbation scene, however necessary, is a bit long. Overall, the film has a nice pace, helped along by a somewhat generic but nevertheless brisk klezmer score, as well as some funny special effects which include animated subtitles, the likes of which I hadn't seen since Murnau's SUNRISE (who would ever think that two such different films could be mentioned in the same blog?) The audience of almost 500 was genuinely supportive, but then again most of that audience was cast, crew, friends and family, of whom Dave has many. But the applause was earned.

Dave Lewis is to be congratulated. I've known him for a good fur years, and in spite of the fact that our taste in film is often polar opposite, I've admired his tenacity. Having been successful at real estate (not unlike Mitchell Robbins, another Boston film producer who went into film at about the same age) he wanted to try film. Like Robbins, he tried to learn everything he could about film production. He even took acting classes. At social gatherings it was not unusual for some member of the film community (sometimes myself) to be cornered by Dave with his probing questions. Short phone conversations were unheard of. But in a collaborative medium, feedback is essential, and the the development of SPAGHETTI AND MATZO BALLS, Dave showed a willingness to ask questions and take feedback. The results show.

In spite of the time and expense (he shot it in 35mm), Dave's expectations for the film are modest and reasonable. He will submit it to 30-40 film festivals, where he will have some success. But he wants to use the film as a basis for a feature film, with some of the early footage the be retained. He may not get his money back on the short, but, in the way he went about the project, this will likely to have been a good investment. After all, four years ago, Andrew Mudge did the same with THE PERFECT GOOSEYS. Dave Lewis may find the "film artist: he would like to be (as he proclaims at the end of his entertaining Making of" trailer, somewhat elusive, but he does have the making of a very good film producer, and one who understands and has the patience for, the post production process.