Fetching Cody

If Larry Clark were ever to direct a time-traveling comedy/drama, it might look something like Fetching Cody. The film revolves around Art (Jay Baruchel) and Cody (Sarah Lind) – a pair of junkies who seem happy enough despite the seediness of their lives (Cody works as a prostitute, while Art is a shameless hustler). After Cody falls into a coma, though, all seems lost – until Art hooks up with a homeless pal who just happens to own a time machine. Art’s plan is to travel back and change the traumatizing events in Cody’s past, presumably in an effort to reshape the woman she’s become (ie prevent her from ever becoming a crack whore). Fetching Cody isn’t necessarily a bad movie – as a time travel adventure, it’s actually pretty effective (there’s even a cute little Back to the Future reference) – but somehow, the whole thing never quite adds up to much more than an instantly forgettable riff on The Butterfly Effect. Writer/director David Ray imbues the film with a sense of pacing that’s best described as wonky, as certain scenes come off as surprisingly entertaining while others just seem to drag on and on. This is despite Baruchel’s gritty, thoroughly convincing portrayal of a street hustler – although, admittedly, it takes a good 20 minutes to get used to the idea of that kid from Undeclared swearing like a sailor and behaving like a sleazeball.

** out of ****