Josh and S.A.M. (1993): Baby Driver

A healthy budget and a wide release doesn’t necessarily equate to cinematic infamy, as Dave discovers with this misfiring family flick.

Spotlighting a film that boasted a budget of $18 million and opened nationwide on seven-hundred and seventy-four screens is a tough sell on a site that prides itself on profiling the forgotten films of the ‘90s rental realm. JOSH AND S.A.M., though, makes a good case for it — not least because it only brought in ten percent of its cost, but also because it’s never seen any kind of physical media release in the post-VHS era.

It was Rita Kempley in the Washington Post who hammered a nail into Josh and S.A.M.’s neglected future, describing it as “low energy primer for raising a serial killer” and “a morose and aimless road movie that never gets out of park.” [1]

Harsh words — but, in all honesty, Frank Deese’s script is needlessly intricate, so it’s no wonder legions of head-scratching parents kept their kids away in droves. The story centres upon eponymous siblings Josh and Sam who are going through the stress of a dysfunctional family. As their mother (Joan Allen) is about to marry a French accountant, the pair are sent to Florida to live with their dad (Stephen Tobolowsky) and his hideous new step-kids, who taunt Josh about being a “homo” and follow it up with “I bet your mom did it with a fag”. Josh, however, has concocted a plan and he begins to brainwash Sam into believing that he’s a genetically engineered child warrior (“Strategically Altered Mutant” – hence the title) who’s been created by the government to fight in a secret war in Africa.

Yep, Huckleberry Finn this ain’t.

Convolution and stupidity aside, Josh and S.A.M. works best when it’s stripped back to the simple road movie that lies at its core. Both Jacob Tierney and Noah Fleiss are perfectly cast as the two boys and give faultless performances. The ensemble complement them well too, most notably in form of Martha Plimpton as a kind-hearted hitchhiker; Chris Penn as the reason they begin their journey; and a delightfully camp Udo Kier as a salon manager.

The first and last directing job for Billy Weber, it’s obvious that the experience left a mark on the famed editor. Lauded for his collaborations with Terence Malick, it’s not surprising that, along with his DP, Don Burgess (Forrest Gump (1994)), his debut feature exhibits some lush photography across the expansive vistas of Middle America. Sadly, cool kids, fun support, and nice views are not a foolproof formula for box office gold — especially when the demographic who might be enticed into the multiplex is a dwindling minority of adolescent teenage lads between eleven and fourteen.

It’s alleged that Deese based his script on a real event: in 1990, Josh and Sam Rosen of Connecticut stole a car following a family squabble; evaded police in the ensuing chase; and hid at the home of a family friend. A believable and fascinating incident free of the usual Tinseltown fancy.

To paraphrase Confucius: films can be simple, but we insist on complicating them.

USA ● 1993 ● Family, Drama ● 96mins

Jacob Tierney, Noah Fleiss, Martha Plimpton, Stephen Tobolowsky, Chris Penn, Udo Kier ● Dir. Billy Weber ● Wri. Frank Deese