By Matt
Pascarella
Rated:
R
Run
time: 1 hour, 26 minutes
After
Brandon (Seth Green) suspects his wife is cheating on him, he takes his
anniversary trip alone, where he meets up with friend, Dan (Breckin Meyer). As
the two travel Thailand, they discover life can offer more than they are aware.
The
movie begins with an unfeeling Brandon flying to Dubai where he meets up with
Dan, whom he hasn’t seen in a while. Brandon tells Dan he suspects his wife,
Vanessa, (who you never meet) is cheating on him and Dan asks Brandon if he
plans to fight for the relationship.
While
in Thailand, Brandon does not enjoy the incredible experiences and scenery that
surround him. All he is focused on is his marriage ending. He and Dan tour
Thailand and discuss the situation. Brandon is not sure how he would fight for
the marriage; and he does not want to get a divorce. Dan tells Brandon he never
really liked Vanessa because of the way she treated him and Brandon.
Dan and
Brandon continue to have incredible experiences, travel to amazing places and
meet interesting people; through most of this, Brandon is very uptight.
On a
coral tour, they meet Ian (Macaulay Culkin) who was originally from South
Dakota, but he did not want the life that was offered there, so decided to move
to Thailand. Brandon asks him “don’t you miss your life?” Ian replies, “How can
I miss a life when I’m busy living it.”
Despite
encouragement from Ian and others, Brandon is still very scared of taking
chances and won’t do things like jump off an embankment into the water or
explore a cave that’s under a waterfall. He remains unhappy for most of the
trip. He wonders what he is doing there and at one point tells Dan he wants to
go home.
Dan
tells Brandon they are going to a bar with Ian where they run into a couple
tour guides (Clare Grant and Brenda Song) from one of their tours. Some crazy
things happen while they are in the bar. Will Brandon’s begin to appreciate
Thailand? Will he get back together with his wife?
OK, let
me start with the positive. This movie had a very cool message about being
present, enjoying yourself and appreciating what you have. It was actually shot
in Thailand and the scenery is spectacular. However, this is a slow movie with
little conflict that didn’t keep me wondering what was going to happen. Despite
its star-studded cast, ‘Changeland’ fell flat. It’s so slow, you kind of forget
there’s conflict at all and it’s more about a guy moping around Thailand. It’s
billed as a comedy, but it is not that funny. I would not recommend it. Two
thumbs down. Sorry, Kevin McCallister.
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