While music can certainly have an effect on people and their lives, in Rebecca Thomas’ Electrick Children, a cassette tape is blamed for something a little more outside the box than just the usual “oh, man, I love this song” – it’s seen as the culprit behind young Julia Garner‘s unexpected pregnancy. Oops? In Thomas’ feature, Garner’s Rachel is a product of a strict fundamentalist Mormon community, and when the fifteen-year-old becomes unexpectedly (and quite inappropriately) pregnant, she believes it to be due to some kind of immaculate conception at the hands (sounds? dulcet tones? wheels?) of a cassette tape. Not content to “fix” the mistake by marrying a fellow Mormon boy, she sets out on a journey that takes her to Las Vegas, where is apparently mistaken for a hipster chick by a long-haired Rory Culkin. This stuff happens all the time.
The film was a hit at last year’s SXSW Film Festival (our own Gwen Reyes called it out as one of the best films of the fest, writing that it “has a huge heart and so much whimsy it’s nearly impossible to walk out not smiling”) and is now open in limited release. Electrick Children absolutely sounds like an indie gem worth seeking out, at least based on its hearty praise and this new trailer.
Check out the trailer for Electrick Children after the break but, beware, it might get you pregnant.
Electrick Children is currently open in NYC and Los Angeles. [Yahoo! Movies]