GOD IS D_AD DATE: SATURDAY, MAY 1 TIME: 2:30 PM VENUE: DGA 2 BUY TICKETS

GOD IS D_AD
(United States, 2009) Dir./Scr.: Abraham L. Lim
Video, 96 min., color, narrative

Abraham Lim’s latest feature, GOD IS D_AD, combines two of the strongest themes from his first two films. Like his debut, ROADS AND BRIDGES (2001), GOD IS D_AD is built around the transformative power of travel, as road trips become quests of the self. Similar to his last film, THE ACHIEVERS (2006), Lim works with an ensemble of core characters; in this case, five misfits from Kansas who pile into an RV bound for a fantasy gaming convention in Chicago. Set in the now-primitive, pre-World of Warcraft era of 1987, GOD IS D_AD assembles a motley crew lead by Tim, a comic store clerk and aspiring dungeon master. As he and his friend/illustrator Bob head towards the Windy City, they collect passengers as random as a multi-sided dice roll: the preppy, “ex-gay” Alex, punk grrrl Meredith, and cheerful (but seizure-prone) Lindy. For each of them, Chicago represents Oz’s Emerald City — they all need something different there, and the backroads of the heartland turn into their own, peril-fraught, yellow brick road.

To accent that point, Lim intercuts their travels with visions of a different pilgrimage. Shot in Korea and based around Tim’s elaborate imaginings of a dungeon quest, this alternate reality follows a cursed group of Korean warriors seeking dangerous fortune. As incongruous as these two journeys may seem, what we steadily come to recognize is that negotiating the bonds of fellowship is as great a challenge as any mythical monster. For the five riders back in the real world, what begins with debates around the hidden meanings of “Hotel California” unravels quickly into anger and distrust as the unmerry band face off with Bible-banging counselors, menacing hitchhikers and one wrong turn too many. Lim’s insights into the angst of teens can feel uncomfortably familiar. Underneath their self-protective armors are bundles of anger, insecurity, and uncertainty, and as the trip wears on, they shed these layers to reveal the raw nerves beneath. It becomes clear that the final destination isn’t what ultimately matters; the true accomplishment comes in building and preserving friendships tested by fate and circumstance, but mostly by one another.
— Oliver Wang

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COMMUNITY CO-PRESENTER: Korean Film Festival in Los Angeles