The Puffy Chair (2004)

Review by All Movie Guide
It's not easy to make romantic baby talk sound realistic on film. Scripted shmoopy talk tends to be full of clichés, rather than expressing the untranslatable language that evolves from the personal experiences and inside jokes of two people. That The Puffy Chair gets this delicate touch down perfectly is one of the earliest indicators what kind of film it will be: it's so natural, it gives the audience the experience of eavesdropping on its three principle characters during one defining weekend. A truly grassroots effort by the Duplass brothers -- Jay (who co-wrote the script and directs) and Mark (who co-wrote and stars) -- The Puffy Chair finds that difficult balance between presenting outrageous plot developments and rendering them realistically through the eye of their handheld camera. In fact, since we've come to understand these characters well enough during the short time we've known them, their stumbling blocks -- actual and emotional -- seem like logical outgrowths of their personalities and the dynamic between them. Mark Duplass and Kathryn Aselton are perfect as the couple whose relationship is unraveling. Though the audience is invited to sympathize with each at different junctures, both display frailties that make them instantly relatable. They become quickly defensive at times, show unusual patience at others, and always try to paste things together by resorting to the familiar, such as that fallback private language. Rhett Wilkins, as Josh's brother, seems to function primarily as comic relief, but he's a soulful, eccentric contributor to their journey as well -- another complex character who'll turn on a dime from deep introspection to instant gratification. Like most good road movies, The Puffy Chair uses the trip to probe the psyches of its characters. But it's a rare asset indeed to make these characters utterly real -- and devastatingly funny -- at the same time. ~ Derek Armstrong, All Movie Guide