The Giant Mechanical Man
The Giant Mechanical Man
PG-13 | 27 April 2012 (USA)
The Giant Mechanical Man Trailers

An offbeat romantic comedy about a silver-painted street performer and the soft spoken zoo worker who falls for him.

Reviews
Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.
Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.
Aneesa Wardle The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
philipjamesbrett This movie was great beyond all expectation. Sure it's a romantic comedy and as that it was both realistic in it's romance and genuinely funny. Really it was about the human condition and what it takes to be truly happy and how often we let things get in the way. It had characters you'll identify with and characters you'll want to slap in the face and yell at but they're characters you'll care about. Realistic characters that will remind you of people that you know. The humor didn't come from cheap put downs nor was it juvenile. It's funny because it rings true. Very entertaining. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for some light entertainment that's intelligent. And of course it would make a great date movie.
SS Sodhi I had high hopes for this movie before I started watching it. I'm a big fan of Jenna Fischer, Chris Messina and Malin Ackerman (though not so much so Topher Grace). And though the Indie Romance genre may be a bit hackneyed, I've always found enjoyment in the littler things that many of these movies have to offer - artistic cinematography, witty banter, and moments that your average viewer can relate to. This movie, however, was lackluster in all of those previous components.If I were to sum up my experience viewing this film in a sentence, it would be: This film has all the tell-tale signs of being written by a try-hard, vapid, parentally subsidized, film school attending hipster who is too far divorced from reality to convince me that I should feel for any of the protagonists in the film. I know that Lee Kirk is probably far from being that kind of person, but his film conveyed that message to me.Jenna Fischer and Chris Messina star as two aimless (or let's not sugar-coat it, USELESS) adults in their 30s, the former who can't seem to hold down a job, and the latter who is a quarters-per-day street performer who lives in a giant urban loft with his girlfriend who is about to break up with him. Now don't get me wrong, having unemployed, 30+ year old millennials as protagonists have worked well before because through the evolution of the plot, they reveal likable and respectable qualities about themselves. That was not the case in this film. The only thing that they convinced me of, perhaps too many times, is that they "feel lost", they "don't know" what they want to do with their lives, and that they have the angst I'd expect from a 14-year-old at a Death Cab For Cutie concert.The plot of the film focuses on the struggle that these aimless 30 something protagonists have against the antagonists portrayed by the working adults in the film who "have it together" and "have their lives figured out". Since the protagonists by themselves don't give me any reason to like them by themselves, the film resorts to an unbelievably farcical portrayal of the latter cohort that paints them as so lacking in any empathy and emotional maturity that I couldn't help but cringe anytime one of these characters received any screen time: the two cheesy guys in suits publicly bragging about their Christmas bonuses at the company party (seriously, who wears suits to a company party), the hiring manager at the temp agency (who fires Jenna Fischer in such a farcically unauthentic manner that in reality, it would sound 'lawsuit' bells employment lawyers everywhere), and Malin Ackerman's character who won't stop pestering her older sister, and forcing Topher Grace's character on her. And Topher Grace, good grief - what sane working adult would think that an over-the-top narcissistic, corny inspirational speaker who half fills conference centers at your local airport's Holiday Inn is a model of success in this day and age? I've seen more believable exposition in Hillary Duff movies.At the end of all this, I was left wondering - is this the level of comical absurdity you have to relegate employed, marginally successful members of society just so that, in juxtaposition with our worthless 30 something protagonists, we're supposed to identify with them? Sorry, not me.
MattyGibbs Just occasionally you happen across a small film that really surprises you. This is one of them. It's an offbeat romance not unlike Once or 500 Days of Summer and if you liked either of those films the chances are you will like this. With any small film like this it relies on the actors to breathe life into the story. Both the leads are impressively charming and have a great chemistry. The writing is sharp and well observed with plenty of funny moments to go along with the spot on romance part. OK it may be slightly predictable but to be honest it wouldn't have worked being any other way. If you want to watch a film that will leave you with a big smile on your face then this is a must. One of the classiest and best romantic comedies I've seen.This is a film that deserves a much wider audience. Impressive.
branden_burger This is a great movie that doesn't try too hard. Most films don't focus on the lives of people who almost, but don't quite fit in. The first few minutes establish the kinds of characters that the protagonists aren't, and perhaps this part is a little overdone. Barring these few minutes, the rest of the movie is a treat. There's some good music in the soundtrack, very appropriate for the mood it's trying to convey. In this vein, "Remember me as a time of day" by Explosions in the Sky is a great tune to have in the background when things are going well in life, when you've got someone to think about who fits in well with the general scheme of your life or is probably responsible in part for the good bits life has to offer. Subdued, soft lighting, a plausible script that doesn't fight to always be clever or funny, great direction and earnest acting make this movie well worth your an hour and a half of your time.