THE GO-GETTER

THE GO-GETTER is the story of Mercer (played by Lou Taylor Pucci) who sets out to find his long-lost half brother by stealing a car and taking a road trip, only to enter into a relationship via cell phone with the woman whose car he stole. The car’s owner, Kate (played by Zooey Deschanel), calls her cell phone, which is now in the stolen car. She and Mercer begin to talk as he reveals why he’s on the road.

Mercer never knew his father, and his mother died a few months ago. So, with no friends and no reason to stay in college, he has set out to find his only family member, Arlen (played by Jsu Garcia), a half-brother he has not seen in 14 years. The trip takes him from city to city throughout the southwest as he follows the trail of Arlen.

Mercer goes into a bohemian commune of potters. He meets a long lost immoral girlfriend. He discovers a man who makes pornographic movies. He is rescued by a weapon loaded liquor salesman and meets a pet store owner who has him play in a band singing “A Might Fortress Is Our God” as the owner works off hours in community service. He finally encounters his brother to see if he wants to accompany him to New Orleans to dispose of their mother’s ashes. When he finally meets up with his brother, the outcome is not what he expected.

Throughout all of his escapades, Mercer talks via phone to Kate and they form an unusual relationship. Toward the end, Kate meets up with him, and together they finish the journey.

THE GO-GETTER is a unique story told in a unique manner and is very well written. The highlight of the story is meeting the quirky (though often immoral) characters along his trip. The acting is solid and very genuine. The soundtrack of mostly independent label pop and rock punctuates the movie and moves the story along well. Mercer’s own struggle with the death of his mother and consequent fear of losing Kate is touching. While the movie is well made, it does suffer from a number of negative elements and a very strong humanist worldview.

Through the course of the movie, Mercer takes a moral slide, stealing the car, then a video camera, trying illegal drugs for the first time, and attempting to lose his virginity. In the story, this is not portrayed as a slide with any consequences, but rather is portrayed as “growing up.” God is discussed and dismissed, whereas “fate” is mentioned as guiding people’s lives. The main characters say that it was fate that had Mercer steal Kate’s car, so they could be together. There’s also plenty of foul language, portrayal of sex scenes and one of the characters riding with Mercer is a homosexual who makes advances at Mercer. In one scene, Mercer is roped into helping a group work off their court mandated community service hours by singing in a Salvation Army type band, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” However, this is played for laughs. Thus, there’s not much to commend about this movie.