Stay (2006)

Director:

Bob Goldthwait

Writer (WGA):

Bob Goldthwait (written by)

Release Date:

21 February 2007 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

A youthful, impulsive sexual encounter opens the door to a dark comedy about the complexities of honesty.

Plot:

'Stay' is a romantic comedy in which a girl's relationships are destroyed when she reluctantly reveals a past indiscretion. 'Stay' will move and touch you -- maybe in a bad way.

Plot Keywords:

Dark Secret | Prison | Funeral | Sex | Brother Sister Relationship

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Melinda Page Hamilton	...	Amy
Bryce Johnson	...	John
Geoffrey Pierson	...	Dad (as Geoff Pierson)
Colby French	...	Ed
Jack Plotnick	...	Dougie
Bonita Friedericy	...	Mom
Brian Posehn	...	Randy
Morgan Murphy	...	Linda
Steve Agee	...	Carl
Lisa Salzano	...	Wrestling Girl #2
Candiss Cogdill	...	Wrestling Girl #3
Harvey J. Alperin	...	Principal
Ernest Misko	...	Priest (as Ernie Misko)
Rebecca Avery	...	Rest Area Mom
Kira Burri	...	Rest Area Girl

Also Known As:

Sleeping Dogs (UK)
Sleeping Dogs Lie (USA) (new title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong and aberrant sexual content, drug use and language.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Ireland:18 | Australia:MA | USA:R | UK:18

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

HareBrained Pictures

Trivia:

The kangaroo statue used in the movie is the same one that appears in Pulp Fiction (1994).

Quotes:

Amy: That's right, in college I blew my dog.

Movie Connections:

References Pulp Fiction (1994)

Soundtrack:

You Got It

Charming, but moderately so

Mildly amusing, low-key, offbeat comedy that plays out like many other relationship low budget type movies, except this uses a shocking plot element to drive any on-screen friction. Stay (Titled Sleeping Dogs Lie on DVD) is a light-hearted morbid little amusement, and while dried out funnyman Bob Goldthwait never exploits any of the inherent discomforts dormant within this absurd love story, he never takes anything much beyond it's one-noted approach either. The modest affair uses this gimmicky device to varied success, becoming both a source of glee when cultivating it's charming sense of humor, and a limiting discouragement which comes along with basing everything around this cheap shot.

Thankfully Goldthwait manages to get an impressive range out of the restrictive screenplay , primarily due to the hard fought performance coming from lead Melinda Page Hamilton. While the movie quickly becomes a thing-for-which-this-plot-element-is-to-thrive, Hamilton maintains a fair amount of integrity throughout, showing a convincing range and dedication to a project no one could have really thought too highly of, especially on paper. Yet, she gives this woman's plight an emotional integrity that will override any sneaking suspicions that Goldthwait penned the rushed script in a blatant attempt to turn heads with it's superficially assigned motives, showing something far more important then any dirty little secret she may harbor by acting and reacting to the ones she loves around her once a certain stability she had relied on started to crumble. To that effect, the movie rises above the small sum of it's parts when relating to an audience the burdens of living with something that is too embarrassing to tell anyone.

For the tiny pockets of hilarity and impressive bouts of emotional substance it provides, Sleeping Dogs Lie still stays bogged in a mediocrity when not directly invested in it's chief conflict. Your typical supporting characters and revolving plot arcs do little to involve one in the particular psychology invested around a pleasing center theme of this movie, making some of the supplementary material unnecessary and irrelative to it's strong points.