Film review: 'Shameless'
A promising set-up remains unfulfilled by the end of the 77-minute "Shameless", a 1993 low-budget indie from Texas filmmaker Robert Byington. Premiering in Los Angeles in Laemmle Theatres' ongoing "International Cinema Showcase: American Independent Films" series at the Grande downtown, the black-and-white production has a few virtues, but it's not hard to see why landing a distributor has been difficult.
Set in Austin, where budding architect and teacher's assistant Myers (Scott Rhodes) meets pretty Latina student Arcadio (Carmen Nogales), "Shameless" is a multicultural romance that brings up potentially interesting issues but comes up short in terms of basic storytelling.
Myers actually first encounters Arcadio's thieving friend, Amalia (Natalie Karp), and the trio become fast friends in the slow lane. While quietly devious Myers and cheerfully virginal Arcadio appear to have no real direction in life, Amalia's spontaneous forays into petty crime slowly arouse Myers, and he jumps at a fewopportunities to see if she's interested.
Maybe she is and maybe she isn't. The atmosphere of sexual tension is meant to draw one into the lives of these slackers, but there's not enough plot to go with the furtive posturing, and even Amalia's larceny is a blase distraction. Factor in the lack of any traditional love scenes, and "Shameless" becomes aimless to a fault.
Of the two actresses, Karp ("Natural Born Killers") has the meatier role and pretty much steals the show, while Nogales ("The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre") tries to make something of her one-note character. Rhodes ("Slacker") is the odd man out, with neither the distinctive looks nor charisma necessary to mold his character into someone we care about.
SHAMELESS
Panorama Entertainment
King Tomato Prods.
Writer-director-producer Robert Byington
Co-producers Scott Perry, Grace Smith
Director of photography Brian O'Kelly
Editor Scott Rhodes
Production designer Mark Bristol
Music Los Pinkys
Black and white
Cast:
Myers Scott Rhodes
Arcadio Carmen Nogales
Amalia Natalie Karp
Running time -- 77 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Set in Austin, where budding architect and teacher's assistant Myers (Scott Rhodes) meets pretty Latina student Arcadio (Carmen Nogales), "Shameless" is a multicultural romance that brings up potentially interesting issues but comes up short in terms of basic storytelling.
Myers actually first encounters Arcadio's thieving friend, Amalia (Natalie Karp), and the trio become fast friends in the slow lane. While quietly devious Myers and cheerfully virginal Arcadio appear to have no real direction in life, Amalia's spontaneous forays into petty crime slowly arouse Myers, and he jumps at a fewopportunities to see if she's interested.
Maybe she is and maybe she isn't. The atmosphere of sexual tension is meant to draw one into the lives of these slackers, but there's not enough plot to go with the furtive posturing, and even Amalia's larceny is a blase distraction. Factor in the lack of any traditional love scenes, and "Shameless" becomes aimless to a fault.
Of the two actresses, Karp ("Natural Born Killers") has the meatier role and pretty much steals the show, while Nogales ("The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre") tries to make something of her one-note character. Rhodes ("Slacker") is the odd man out, with neither the distinctive looks nor charisma necessary to mold his character into someone we care about.
SHAMELESS
Panorama Entertainment
King Tomato Prods.
Writer-director-producer Robert Byington
Co-producers Scott Perry, Grace Smith
Director of photography Brian O'Kelly
Editor Scott Rhodes
Production designer Mark Bristol
Music Los Pinkys
Black and white
Cast:
Myers Scott Rhodes
Arcadio Carmen Nogales
Amalia Natalie Karp
Running time -- 77 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 11/25/1996
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.