There's no question that my home state of Indiana has a growing indie film scene. This includes a growing number local, regional, national, and internationally acclaimed film fests and a fairly recent film tax credit that has opened the door to increased film production here in Indiana.
It's always exciting when an Indiana film crosses my desk for review. Pears is the feature debut from writer/director Ryan McCurdy. Shot in Evansville, Indiana, Pears falls within the realm of microcinema with an estimated production budget right around $3,000 and a strong focus on some of the area's finest regional talent.
The film centers around Perry, also known as Pears (Kevin Arnold), a wannabe Private Investigator whose potential isn't quite that great despite being mentored by brother-in-law Hollis (Jeremy Brailsford), an actual P.I. who's actually good at it. However, after Hollis inexplicably disappears after leaving to visit a mysterious, influential client named Eddie Hightower (Kevin Roach) Pears is called on by his sister (Jillian Weinzapfel) to become the P.I. practically no one thinks he can actually be.
Pears is a fun indie film. It's the kind of film that makes you appreciate both the writer/director and the film's ensemble. Despite the inherent challenges of making an ultra-low budget film, Pears manages to be entertaining and to sell a good story. McCurdy adds in quite a few layers here for a 72-minute film, however, for the most part they all work and they gel together quite nicely.
Kevin Arnold is top-notch as Pears, a likable chap who could kinda sorta pass for a Barney Fife type of character. While Pears is centered around the crime world, it's more comedy than caper and more chuckle-inducing than thriller. McCurdy's ensemble seems to get it and that keeps the film quite fun from beginning to end.
Kevin Roach is an absolutely blast as Eddie Hightower, the film's baddie and a deliciously fun character to watch. Leo Kempf and Joe Gilpatrick are also terrific as a couple of semi-bumbling goons.
I'm always pleasantly surprised when Jakob Bilinski shows up in a film. A veteran filmmaker and up-and-coming writer, Bilinski's spot-on as the kind of guy you wouldn't want to meet in an alley or a comic shop. The rest of the ensemble shines as well including Emily Durchholz as Eddie Hightower's wife Sarah and Olivia Schaperjohn as Tiffany, the latter being someone you just plain need to experience.
McCurdy quite ably shoots the film himself and is complemented perfectly by Daniel Roach's excellent original score.
Pears played the indie fest circuit and picked up prizes at Victory International Film Festival (Audience Choice Award) and Franklin, Indiana's Torchfire Film Festival (Best Hoosier Feature). With distribution by FilmHub, you can check out Pears for yourself now on Amazon's Prime Video and Tubi.
Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
