In a stark police interrogation room, the friends of a manipulative egomaniac, Adam Tucker, discuss their lives and his mysterious death. It seems as though Adam literally fell off the face of the earth; the last time he was seen was on Carson’s Bluff, a cliff that served as a hang-out spot for the friends in better times. His closest friend, Chris, appears to have the most to hide of all of the friends, but it’s only through their collective memories of Adam that they are able to truly reveal a portrait of their deceased friend.
“Getting Lost” is the first feature length film by Ben Feuer ’06, filmed from April to June of 2004 in New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts. The production premiered in Shanklin on Nov. 19 and 21 to a receptive audience.
The friends in “Getting Lost” have a tangled web of relationships, all of which revolve around Adam, played by Kelby Akin. Chris, played by Justin Schmidt ’06, has known the protagonist since freshman year of college. Chris is a benevolent and amicable character, and exactly why he and Adam are friends is almost as big a mystery as Adam’s death. However, it’s assumed Chris has fallen under the same spell that has captured the two other members of the clique, Mara, played by Valerie Tosi, and Julie, played by Roslyn Ross ’04.
In flashback scenes, the memories of the individual characters create a picture that shows all sides of Adam—the Lothario, the best friend, the egomaniac–and leave the audience to piece them together.
The flashback scenes show definitive moments that aid in the construction of Adam’s portrait. These include a love scene between Adam and Chris, a scene in which Adam tells Mara he wants to own her soul and a telling sequence in which Julie catches Adam faking an identity.
Despite his duplicitous and arrogant ways, Adam manages to elicit some sympathy from the audience near the end when we hear recordings of his numerous voicemail messages to Chris. As he calls back repeatedly, the desperation and need in his voice are pitiful, exposing his dependence on his friend. The messages conclude with him asking to meet at Carson’s Bluff, the last place he was seen alive.
The dependent relationship between the two best friends is pivotal to the movie. Though Adam’s relationship with Julie and Mara provides insight into his life, his relationship with Chris is the most sincere. The ambiguous homosexual nature of their relationship adds another layer to understanding Adam and the film as a whole.
Schmidt does not believe the relationship between his character and Adam should be understood as a political statement on homosexuality.
“This is Wesleyan…[but] there were no politics involved,” Schmidt said.
His character reflects a similar attitude in his interrogation, suggesting that the friends’ specific actions not be explored too seriously.
“When you get right down to it, it was pointless….I guess most of what we do is pretty pointless,” Chris says.
The other actors include two University of Massachusetts students, Tosi and Akin. Ross is pursuing a career in acting in California.
Director and writer Feuer made the movie for pleasure. It is not a thesis and was motivated only by his desire to make a film.
“It’s sort of an alien feeling, seeing something that for a long time existed only in your head playing out in front of you,” Feuer said.
Feuer is developing ideas for future films, including topics like terrorism and fundamentalism, but is currently working on a project concerning Boston Red Sox fans and failed marriages. Anyone interested in helping can contact bfeuer@wesleyan.edu.
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