The Film: Motivational Growth
THe Co-host: Jon Bjorling
Long ago, I lived in southern California, where I worked at a Blockbuster Video store. This suited me well, as I was a knowledgeable clerk, pre-IMDb.com. I had a few friends, though I was hardly a popular guy. My one role among my friends, if nothing else, was that of a curator of strange cinema. Under the radar, rare, or unheard-of films would somehow land in my hands, and I would eagerly share these films with my friends (Jon being one such pal). This episode’s film, Motivational Growth, is exactly the kind of film I would expose my friends to, for better or worse.
A slacker shut-in is watching mundane TV programming when suddenly and unexpectedly, his vintage television breaks. Pop! Fzzzt! Soon, our protagonist, Ian (Adrian Digiovanni) calls for a TV repairman, and in the mean time, attempts suicide. “Attempts” is key here, because he does not succeed. However, he wakes up on his bathroom floor to a voice that doesn’t come from any conventional mouth. No, this is the voice of The Mold (Jeffrey Combs).
The Mold KNOWS. You see, The Mold is something of a life coach for Ian, who up until this point had all but given up on living, seemingly wasting away. But in the wake of his busted TV set comes more interaction with the outside world than he’s had in six months. His landlord, a rude delivery person, a nice but strange yet date-able neighbor woman, a nefarious TV repairman, and an altogether-different-but nice TV Repairman all cross through his doorway. With ambiguous advice from The Mold, Ian navigates these encounters with mixed results. Is the Mold a figment of his imagination? It must be. And by the end of it all, does this Mold serve a purpose? Or is this all an exercise in madness?
Neither Jon nor I knew what we were in for when heading in to watch this movie. Yet, it is exactly the kind of film that belongs on this show. Motivational Growth can be found on VUDU free of charge, or if you’d like to own it you can visit GOG.com. Do take a moment and join us as we try to wrap our minds around this strange little film from 2013.
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