OVERNIGHT DELIVERY (1998)

Directed By: Jason Bloom 
Written By: Steve Bloom & Marc Sedaka 
Cinematography By: Edward J. Pei 
Editor: Luis Colina 

Cast: Paul Rudd, Reese Witherspoon, Christine Taylor, Larry Drake, Tamara Mello, Sarah Silverman, Gary Wolf, Carl Anthony Payne II, Tobin Bell

A man suspects his girlfriend of being unfaithful. So he sends her a letter, but than finds out that he was wrong. He has 24 hours to stop the package, prevent a disaster, and fall in love. The only problem is the delivery man will not stop until the package has been delivered.

This film proves that when it comes to the scripts and dialogue of Kevin smith it is hard to direct for others without knowing the rhythm of them.

This is the one film made from a Kevin Smith script that he didn't direct. The truly is lackluster, but entertaining. It just always feels too wacky and outlandish then it should be. Way too formulaic. Even though it has a great cast.

Kevin Smith served as screenwriter on an early version of the script that was not used.

The story is of Wyatt Trips who has a high shook sweetheart who both decide to for to two far away different colleges and Having a long distance romance, The one time when he calls her he is lead to believe she is cheating. He gets drunk with a coed stripper and sends her a break-up/revenge letter, but he finds out he was mistaken and we follow his various attempts to her the letter back. He ends up having to take a road trip with the same stripper to either stop the mailman played by Larry drake who seems to have a terminator like sense of duty. or intercept the letter.

It's strange Larry drake has always struck me as an actor who studied Shakespeare at Yale and Harvard who takes acting very seriously, but always plays in genre films like this or DR. GIGGLES sort of like William Atherton always playing pompous villains and jerks. --I know the play sounds familiar, but this was made before the film ROAD TRIP and surprisingly isn't as lowbrow. In fact It is rather tame as it is obviously aimed at a teenage audience.

The film was also one of Paul Rudd's first comedies and he does well. The beginning of a certain looseness that would come later in his career.

This film went straight to home video. Not surprising as it appears like most Kevin smith products to have a low budget, but more camera work. I don't know why he didn't direct or himself maybe too lighthearted to for in with his portfolio at the time? and after MALLRATS didn't want to do another film specifically for teenagers? Who knows. The film was majorly rewritten after he sold it and the studio took ahold of it.

The film is entertaining bit it is also a film you can easily forget about after. This film is also one of the rare films to feature actress Resse Witherspoon as a brunette and here she is not as refined as she is usually in screen. Here her character is a bit more trashy, though with a heart of bronze.

The role of Ivy Miller was written for Joey Lauren Adams, Kevin Smith's girlfriend at the time.

The film is also noteworthy for an appearance of a young sarcastic Sarah Silverman and a late appearance of Carl Anthony Payne II who will always be immortalized for playing cockroach on the Cosby show.

The film plays like a lost John Hughes script from the 1980's with a lot less heart, before he started making films for children exclusively.

Grade: C