Maybe Shower
Directed by: Lex Lybrand
Runtime: 81 minutes
Writing for a small independent website such as this one comes with a few things; the occasional free film screening, freedom of expression, and a reasonable audience. Because of this, we tend to receive requests often from smaller indie filmmakers looking to get the word out about their film. A lot of these can go unnoticed, generic emails sent out to every possible source looking for a scrap of promotion don’t usually go over so well when we get them weekly. To tell the truth, most of the films that we receive in this way just don’t cut it; it’s incredibly hard to review something that doesn’t hold your attention. Now I know that probably sounds horrible, but I still appreciate these films because creating a film, even one on a shoestring budget, is a herculean effort. Someone out there has done their all to make something and… that’s amazing. If filmmakers and creators didn’t take those first chances, we wouldn’t have the Quentin Tarantinos, Wes Andersons, or Kevin Smiths of the world (cliché, I know). So, when I received a personal direct message from indie director Lex Lybrand after he read my latest review, asking me to check out his film Maybe Shower, I thought… fuck it, why not?
Before jumping into the flick I decided to do some quick research, finding that Maybe Shower is Lex Lybrand’s fourth film and it had featured at multiple festivals back in 2018. It even managed to pick up a few awards, including best picture at Portland Comedy Film Festival. I was left hopeful for my upcoming viewing. This hope was well placed. Maybe Shower was an enjoyable flick that managed to stray away from the vast majority of the trappings that keep most indie films down. Pacing can be a real problem with indie flicks, especially during the first act, but this film gets the ball rolling quickly and manages to keep a brisk pace throughout its 81 minutes. Much of this is down to a well-constructed, tight script with a simple premise: three women are all possibly pregnant, so they decide to invite their friends and the potential fathers to a ‘Maybe Shower,’ before interesting interactions ensue. The film relies massively on its actors to sell its dialogue-heavy script. Luckily, we receive mostly solid performances from the cast. There are a few moments where things feel a little over-rehearsed, but they are few and can be expected. Another pitfall for Indie films can be in the direction. While the direction in Maybe Shower is nothing flashy or innovative, at no point was I left wondering why a scene was framed in a particular way, or bored by static closeups akin to daytime soap operas. Lex and the cinematographer definitely have a solid grasp on the basics and manage to get a few interesting shots in.
Maybe Shower owes a lot to the indie films that have come before it. You can practically see the influence of Kevin Smith screaming through the gaps, but is this a bad thing? No, not entirely. What I would like to see going forward from the director is a little more risk; change and add to the style, make it yours. That isn’t to say the film is a complete rip-off; it genuinely has something different to say than films that have come before it, even if it does so in a familiar way. But this is early on, and I’m interested to see more of Lybrand’s projects in the future. So, if you are a fan of dialogue-heavy light comedies and you want to stray away from the big corporate Hollywood flicks for a night, give Maybe Shower a watch. You won’t regret it.
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