Lost On Purpose (2013)

Directed by: Eshom Nelms / Ian Nelms
Country: USA

Movie Review: Nelms brothers, Eshom and Ian, had to ask for a financial help via Kickstarter to release their second feature film, “Lost On Purpose”, which became satisfying along the way after a boring start. The story, set in the rural Californian area of San Joaquin Valley, focuses on two brothers, Fever (James Lafferty) and D-1 (Aaron Hill), who are part of a group of five friends hired to work in a ranch owned by Ms. Liz (Jane Kaczmarek), a determined third generator farmer with alcohol problems. Struggling with health and financial problems, Ms. Liz is doing what she can to keep the ranch working properly, avoiding doing business with Delbert Furgeson (C.Thomas Howell) a greedy and successful co-op owner who wants to buy her ranch. The story, narrated by Fever, also provides us with more information about each of the friends: their relationships, frustrations, concerns, family environments, and dreams, which include to be successful with their band. We already have seen this stuff before but the truth is that the story, being simple and realistic, gets better as it reaches the end. Cinematography by Johnny Derango has some credit, as well as most of the performances, while direction was fair but not remarkable. Not everything ends up fine in this low-key independent film but one lesson can be taken: sometimes dreams don’t become more than dreams, but if you have a clean conscience and the support from your friends, life will be easier to endure. Better the story than its execution.