Happy Camper

Bubble is finally in Canadian videostores! I just watched it, and it's great. Definitely not a Hollywood movie. In many ways it's more real than even a Dogma 95 film or a documentary, without the shaky hand-held camera business ( I think that's so artificial, anyway; life doesn't look like that unless you jump up and down constantly!). Everything is natural and low-key, but the movie isn't slow - except maybe the scenes in the doll factory, which I found interesting. It's kinda eerie, seeing somebody toss tiny rubber feet onto a tray, or watching doll faces popping out of Hans Solo-type moulds.
Bubble's set in a small Southern factory town. An older lady named Martha works at the doll factory to support herself and her dad, and she's "best friends" with a much younger fellow, Kyle. She drives him to and from his jobs at the doll factory and a shovel factory, since he lives in a trailer park with his mom and doesn't have his own car. They don't talk much, but they have a quiet kind of kinship that works very well for both of them. These characters are so convincing that all this doesn't come across as sad in any way. They're just average, hardworking people who don't feel sorry for themselves. The only thing missing in their lives is real communication. They talk without saying much of anything: Everybody's in their own little bubble.
Martha's nose gets slightly bent out of joint when Kyle begins dating the new girl at the factory, Rose, a single mother who likes to steal from her boyfriends. But Martha's not the angry type. She's just wary of Rose's motives. Especially after she babysits Rose's daughter for an evening and Rose's ex barges in to accuse Rose of stealing his pot and his money.
Then Rose turns up dead.

Also rented Must Love Dogs.