my brief thoughts on.... 'Cashback' (2006)

this film was just a happy accident.... it kept popping up as a recommended viewing, but i didn't decide to watch it until i finally read the summary.... it's a quaint little romantic/comedy/drama from the UK that crosses some normal boundries into the surreal.... but it all works so damn well that it's now in my list of top films from 2006.... it caught my attention from the opening credits and didn't let me go until after the closing credits finished rolling.... it's not a nail-biter of a film.... it moves at a slow and steady pace like a train rolling out of the station.... it follows your standard rules of cinema, but the little twist of the story creates a whole other side to the plot.... one that asks a lot of 'what if?' questions and has the guts to answer them too.... it presents you with a reality that all of us have thought about at one point in our lives: the ability to freeze time.

while our hero, Ben, is working the nightshift at a supermarket he realizes that he has the ability to freeze time.... meanwhile, he's slowing falling for the checkout clerk Sharon.... and inbetween working and fawning over her, he takes time to freeze the customers and sketch them, in various states of undress.... this probably sounds a bit creepy.... but the way it's pulled off in the film is fairly tasteful and shows the long term effects of these actions.... (and no, he doesn't undress Sharon.... even though he could.)

this film is beautiful to watch.... there's a scene near the end that encapsulates what love is in a visual sense.... it's not something i can explain, but the way the scene is drawn out creates a tangible feeling of love.... the credit for this belongs to the cinematographer, the special effects people and the screenwriter.... the screenwriter also created complete characters that lived and breathed on their own, even outside of the world he created.... they stick with you even after you turn it off.... these are presented as real people, with real lives, and real problems.... people you might know in real life.... and for all you know, maybe one of them is harboring a secret and they can freeze time....? i doubt it, but stranger things have happened....

after this film ended, i didn't hesitate to give this 4 out of 5 stars and might have gone as far as a full 5 out of 5 if it wasn't for the slight 'icky' factor.... that being the fact that Ben violates the rights of the women he sketches, by undressing them without their knowledge.... that being said, i would recommend this to anyone with a slight slant towards the bizarre.... and to those who like a good love story.... it's a new twist on an old theme.... something that i hadn't seen before, and something you haven't seen either.... it's available right now OnDemand on Netflix and i recommend that you add it to your queue when you get a chance.... it's a great film.

if you like this, watch: well, there aren't any other films about guys who can freeze time in love with girls.... at least not that i can remember