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Movies / On DVD / Gigantic
Gigantic

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Gigantic (2008)

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Reviews Counted:72

Fresh:27

Rotten:45

Average Rating:4.7/10

Consensus: This overly quirky, incessantly whimsical indie is too self-conscious for its own good.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language, some sexual content and violence.

Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Apr 3, 2009 Limited

Synopsis: GIGANTIC’s Brian Weathersby (Paul Dano) isn’t your average 28-year-old man. He sleepily works as a mattress salesman while he tries to fulfill his lifelong dream of adopting a Chinese baby. But... GIGANTIC’s Brian Weathersby (Paul Dano) isn’t your average 28-year-old man. He sleepily works as a mattress salesman while he tries to fulfill his lifelong dream of adopting a Chinese baby. But Brian’s somnambulist state is interrupted by the arrival of Harriet Lolly (Zooey Deschanel), who prefers going by the name "Happy." She stops by the mattress store after her rich, bullying father (John Goodman) buys the most expensive bed on the salesroom floor, and she immediately draws Brian into her world. A romance with Happy beckons, but Brian is close to achieving his goal. Now if he could only avoid the violent attacks of the crazy homeless man who is stalking him.... Like many small black comedies, GIGANTIC is driven by its characters, an indie-rock soundtrack, and some seemingly random elements that set it apart from its studio counterparts. But GIGANTIC’s tiny status doesn’t mean that it is lacking in the casting department. LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE and THERE WILL BE BLOOD have demonstrated Dano’s range, and he plays a fully formed character here. Deschanel (YES MAN) again plays a vibrant, quirky love interest that will be familiar to viewers of indie films like GARDEN STATE and her own work in WEEDS and FLAKES. But the prize should really go to Goodman, who adds authenticity to his character’s strangeness, remaining likable even as he threatens the lives of Brian’s parents. [More]

Starring: Paul Dano, Zooey Deschanel, John Goodman, Ed Asner

Starring: Paul Dano, Zooey Deschanel, John Goodman, Ed Asner, Jane Alexander, Zach Galifianakis

Director: Matt Aselton

Director: Matt Aselton
Screenwriter: Adam Nagata, Matt Aselton
Producer: Mindy Goldberg, Christine Vachon
Studio: First Independent Pictures

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Release:

Aug 11, 2009

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Widescreen

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo - English
  • Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
 
 
 
 

Reviews for Gigantic

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1 - 20 (sorted by source)
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Happy would be sad if you didn't want to see her story. And you wouldn't like a Manic Pixie Dream Girl when she's angry.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment 1 Comment
05/09/09
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

...the story of how two emotionally damaged but terribly affected andprivileged underachievers meet, fall in love and presumably somehow form a family.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment 1 Comment
06/12/09
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The script is sharp, well written, and with some strong performances, especially John Goodman.

Full Review Source: At the Movies | comment 1 Comment
04/06/09
Ben Lyons
Ben Lyons
At the Movies

I felt like I was being hit over the head with a quirky club.

Full Review Source: At the Movies | comment 1 Comment
04/06/09
Ben Mankiewicz
Ben Mankiewicz
At the Movies

It's just not all that interesting to watch two pretty young things go through the muddled rituals of the pas de duh when I can, you know, do it just as poorly myself.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment 1 Comment
04/24/09
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle

Any resemblance the film bears to real people and real situations is purely coincidental.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment 1 Comment
04/02/09
Scott Tobias
Scott Tobias
AV Club

Gigantic plays like a Sundance movie with half the nouns removed; fetchingly cryptic for a while, it's ultimately just obscure.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment 1 Comment
04/23/09
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment 1 Comment
04/23/09
Betsy Sherman
Betsy Sherman
Boston Phoenix

With curdled humor and cardboard characters, this ghastly movie completely misses the mark.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment 1 Comment
04/03/09
Pam Grady
Pam Grady
Boxoffice Magazine

Gigantic is the sort of kitchen sink movie many first-time directors make, mistakenly believing that they have to throw every idea they've ever come up with into just one film in case they never get a chance to make another.

Full Review Source: BrandonFibbs.com | comment Comment
05/21/09
Brandon Fibbs
Brandon Fibbs
BrandonFibbs.com

If there's anything truly celebratory about Gigantic, it's the exposed performances from Dano and Deschanel.

Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | comment 1 Comment
04/02/09
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
BrianOrndorf.com

Was there any idea that came to writer-director Matt Aselton while he made "Gigantic" that he didn't use? Seriously, that cutting room floor must have beenSPOTLESS.

Full Review Source: Capital Times (Madison, WI) | comment 1 Comment
05/15/09
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

The kind of mumbling, lank-haired, achingly self-conscious indie rom-com that gives mumbling, lank-haired, achingly self-conscious indie rom-coms a bad name.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment 1 Comment
06/19/09
Ali Catterall
Ali Catterall
Channel 4 Film

On the basis of Gigantic, Matt Aselton can make a fine and original film. This isn't quite it, but it has moments so good, all you wish for is a second draft.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 1 Comment
04/09/09
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

One of those indies that seems to be trying to top the quirkiness quotient of Juno.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment 1 Comment
04/20/09
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
Christian Science Monitor

A note to all indie filmmakers (one that will be too late for Matt Aselton, writer (with Adam Nagata) and director of GIGANTIC): quirky is a tone, not a plot.

Full Review Source: CHUD | comment 1 Comment
04/02/09
Devin Faraci
Devin Faraci
CHUD

Gigantic is the sort of kitchen sink movie many first-time directors make, mistakenly believing that they have to throw every idea they've ever come up with into just one film in case they never get a chance to make another.

Full Review Source: Colorado Springs Gazette | comment 1 Comment
05/21/09
Brandon Fibbs
Brandon Fibbs
Colorado Springs Gazette

There's nothing inside, nothing to connect the film with the emotions of living people.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment 2 Comments
04/03/09
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

A likable cast brings some charm and humour to Gigantic but it remains an overly mannered, self-conscious effort.

Full Review Source: Daily Express | comment 1 Comment
06/19/09
Allan Hunter
Allan Hunter
Daily Express

By the end, I was thoroughly alienated by the movie's twee, self-satisfied empty-headedness and rooting for the homeless man to do his worst.

Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment 1 Comment
06/19/09
Christopher Tookey
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]
 
 
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