Okay– “On the Road with Judas” is film about a writer who has written a novel that is made into a movie in which his imaginary characters are “real” people who are portrayed by actors who comment on the real/fictional characters they are playing.
Nevermind.
Suffice to say, this metaphysical world makes sense in writer/director/character JJ Lask’s head, as it does on the screen. The author has a problem with reality; therefore, he reworks it through his fiction. Judas, his main character, is an underground hero, so much so that a movie is being made of his life. Lask interacts with his characters, as do the actors hired to portray them. The cerebral journey blurs the line between creator and creation, as well as reality and revised reality.
If this sounds pretentious, it’s not. Though the movie elevates Judas to the level of iconic legend, it does so with a wink. He and his quirky friends may be the subject of “talk show” interest, but the mundaneness and normalcy of their story is apparent. Thoroughly postmodern, the tale has simple heart at its core: since our lives rarely are what we wish them to be, sometimes we need to sustain our illusions in order to get by.
For those who enjoy the intellectualism, imagery and melancholy of works such as “The Royal Tenenbaums” or “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” this is a film worth checking out.
