The Academy Awards are still over a month away, but after the airing of the Golden Globes people are already buzzing on what movies will win what awards next month. One award that does not generate a lot of buzz, even during the Oscar telecast is who will win for Best Short Film in the Live Action category. Yes, there are enough short films made every year that warrants the Academy to give the Oscar to one of them every year. Most of us don’t get to see these shorts. I was recently able to see a short film called “A Day in the Life of Plain Jen”. Whether or not it will be one of the nominated films is yet to be known.
Jen is the kind of woman who would be any geeky guy’s pinup girl. She’s a junior accountant at the same company as her fashionista cousin, Crystal. On the day Crystal finally convinces Jen to trade in her cute t-shirts and jeans for a great looking dress and shoes, is the same day Jen finds herself caught up in an international money laundering scheme that grabs the attention of both the CIA and the mob.
“A Day in the Life of Plain Jen” was written by Carrie Lynn Certa who stars in the movie as Jen, but decided not to direct, even though she does have past directing credits. It’s understandable, acting AND directing can be quite a burden and Ms. Certa would want to concentrate more on her acting. It pays off because she is terrific in the film. She brings out the essence of who the character is and you can’t help, but to like her and even want to get to know her better. There are no bad performances from the other members of the cast. Kyle Hester fills in nicely as the male lead in the movie and Mary LeGault, who plays Crystal, is equally delightful when she shows up on screen, but Carrie Lynn Certa is the real standout among the cast.
“A Day in the Life of Plain Jen” does have its issues, mostly on the technical ends. The lighting is often too dark in some of the scenes. The musical score sounds like it was professionally done, but it never quite fits with the action that is going on the screen. The movie reaches the point where the music starts to become a distraction.
Carrie has decided to try to turn “A Day in the Life of Plain Jen” into a feature and is currently seeking funds to help get that going through Kickstarter.com. If you want to take a look at the Kickstarter page, you can find out all the information about it by clicking HERE. There are still two weeks left for the campaign to reach its goal of $25,000. If it does achieve it, “A Day in the Life of Plain Jen” full length version would certainly be worth checking out.
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