Irate

‘Please Stand By’ is a limited-release, straight-to-DVD gem, a must watch

By JASON GUYER
iRate
Every now and then movies fly under the radar or — in the case of “Please Stand By” — under the phaser beam.

Yes, that is a “Star Trek” reference and no, it is not a great one.

Starring Dakota Fanning as Wendy, a high-functioning autistic woman, who seeks to enter her “Star Trek” script into a “Star Trek”fan fiction screenwriting contest.

“Please Stand By” takes you on Wendy’s journey of creativity and love of “Star Trek” through Wendy finding her own sense of self-reliance because of that love.

“Please Stand By” had a limited theater release and was released on Video on Demand (VOD) the same day it went to theaters.

There are often a myriad of reasons movies go straight to DVD/Bluray or the even more common option in 2018, straight to VOD.

The reasons are usually are budget and quality, although there are some others.

B-movies do this freqquently but going directly to VOD is not an option exclusively for B-movies. Independent films and limited-release films will utilize the VOD on the same day as theater release market.

Same day as theater is a way to expand the reach of a film that otherwise could not reach many viewers, especially in the theater market and though it helps, it does not accomplish that.

Even I gloss over some of those types of B-movies, independent films and same-day VOD releases.

“Sharknado 5” is the kind of movie that, unless a viewers likes Sharknado films, there is no need to watch. One was enough for me.

They are usually lower-tier films, not bad if you like those types of films. But I don’t like bad writing, bad directing or bad acting.

Far too many of these types of films have one or even all three of these liabilities and even sadder is that films like “Please Stand By” go unnoticed.

However, my love for film dictates I have to watch as many films as I can and all types of film I can .

Every once in awhile, I get pleasantly surprised by a film for which I wasn’t expecting much.

“Please Stand By” was one of these films and mostly because of Fanning’s portrayal ofWendy.

From the get go, Fanning grabs the viewers and makes them root for and fall in love with Wendy.

If anything sold me on that fact, it was the ‘Star Trek” trivia scene, where Wendy schools two Trek fanboys in their knowledge of the “star Trek” universe.

In “Please Stand By,” Fanning fully conveys the connection between Wendy and “Star Trek” and why Wendy would love that TV show in particular.

Wendy shows a special affinity for the Spock character himself and writing the Spock character.

There is a shared oddity with Spock that brings out the best of Wendy, especially creatively.

Capturing that facet of Wendy and making it obvious to the viewer but obscuring it to every other character in or around Wendy’s life is a great acting feat by Fanning.

It is no “I Am Sam” performance but it is Fanning’s best work in some time, well besides the television show “The Alienist.”

Toni Collette and Alice Eve also join the main cast as Wendy’s support system in “Please Stand By.”

Collette plays the appropriately named Scottie, who is Wendy’s caregiver , while Eve plays Wendy’s sister Audrey.

No performances are transcendent but they are all quite good.

Besides Fanning’s Wendy, these roles are not overtly challenging but each character has depth and purpose to Wendy’s story.

Each character realizes something about themself and about Wendy before Wendy’s journey is done.

“Please Stand By” and Wendy’s story are simple and concise but in the end they are touching and heartwarming.

“Star Trek” may seem silly to some people and some may not even like “Please Stand By” but there is something we can all take awayfrom someone who loves and is passionate about something like Wendy.

Movies do not always have to be overly complicated to be great. Sometimes the simplest stories are the best ones — like taking the simple story of dropping of a script into an epic journey to find oneself and accomplishing it.

Setting it’s own phasers to stun “Please Stand By” does exactly that, stuns.

 

IRATE SCORE: 3/5

 

Jason Guyer is an avid moviegoer who works in the Graphics Department at the Eagle Times. For questions or comments, he can be emailed at [email protected]

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