the wendell baker story Tagged Articles at Cinematical

A quirky, character-driven throwback to all those lovable, yet meandering '70s flicks, The Wendell Baker Story arrives at a time when people are itching for a large, big-budgeted special effects spectacular. This film is not that. However, it does reunite brothers Luke and Owen Wilson for the first time since they shared the same big screen in Wes Anderson's 2001 pic The Royal Tenenbaums. To make it even more of a family affair, the eldest Wilson brother Andrew helps the younger Luke direct, while the result ends up falling somewhere between Bottle Rocket and Rancho Deluxe; a neatly-wrapped Texas meal that comes with enough mouth-watering sides to keep your belly full as your mind begins to wonder.

Wendell Baker (Luke Wilson) is a low-maintenance conman whose friendly, good-natured optimism hinders more than it helps him; so much so that all he ends up doing is conning himself. Knee-deep in his latest scam (which involves driving to the border to sell fake Texas drivers licenses to illegal immigrants), Wendell figures he has it all worked out. Not to mention there's a little lady (Eva Mendes) waiting for him back at home, if he remembers to pick her up from work on time. He's such a free-spirited, "everything will turn out just fine" moron that even when the feds bust him, he shakes off a lengthily prison sentence as if he accidentally forgot to pick up a bottle of water on the way to the gym. But that's Wendell. The way he sees it, life is too short to feel pain. But when his sweet-as-pie girlfriend Doreen decides to ditch Wendell because he's too busy mending rifts between the blacks and the skinheads while in prison, the old "you don't know what you got until it's gone" theme hits him harder than a bull at a rodeo.

Right now, I know you want to read this but for some reason you cannot take your eyes off the ones staring back at you from above. They're intense, and kind of freak you out, but it's okay - I'm there for you. Now, I'm giving you one more chance here, so pay attention. Are you reading now? Good.

I've always felt like crap after someone has offered me a second chance to get it done. Sure, it seems great to be able to try it again or do the whole thing over, but doesn't that just mean you failed the first time around? Then again, upon succeeding with your second chance, you're hit with this amazing feeling of accomplishment. Failure did not conquer. You did it. You're a star!

All of the following films feature people searching for their own personal second chance. Whether it be external, internal, dramatic or comedic - it's really about proving life is full of those "try again later" moments. Perhaps you may want to ponder your own second chances after reading this week's Trailer Park...