As someone who has performed improvisational comedy professionally for over twenty-five years, I can fully attest that the improv comedy you see performed on stage does not translate easily to film. With improv factories like Second City, UCB, and Groundlings pumping out comedians on their high-speed conveyor belts of chuckles, Hollywood indie filmmakers are churning out films that are hard-pressed to capture the make-it-up-on-the-spot magic conjured from your mainstage improv show.
So, how does Josh Sutherland and Shelley Pack’s indie comedy Chasing Molly fair amongst the crowded comic field? Verdict: Better than most. The film opens with a pair of con-artists, Molly (Shelley Pack) and Atticus (Jim Cashman), on the phone with clients/suckers of their Demon Cleaners business. Posing as paranormal experts, they come to their client’s homes and conduct exorcisms while snatching various items and heirlooms from their unsuspecting victims in the process. They cleverly take things that their targets won’t notice is gone right away.
“…unfortunately for Atticus, she sold all the drugs and, in the process, robbed of all the money she earned selling the drug.”
Trouble comes when the henchman of an infamous mob boss, Mr. Black (Kurt Angle), needs the duo to cleanse their criminal hideout. While on the job, Atticus steals an innocuous teapot from an office desk drawer. While going through the teapot afterward, it is filled with some kind of narcotic. Taking the drug to an “expert,” they find out it’s some form of high-grade ecstasy. After just a minute, the “expert” feels like he can “suck his own dick.” Excited, the pair records his reaction for an internet video and to start selling the drug.
This discovery begins a wacky montage of clandestine sales transactions ending with the abduction of Atticus’ by Mr. Black himself. Contacting Molly, Mr. Black tells her to return the drugs she stole, or he’ll kill Atticus and track her down as well. Molly agrees, but unfortunately for Atticus, she sold all the drugs and, in the process, robbed of all the money she earned selling the drug.
