Linoleum * * * *

This independent film is on at a few of the art-house cinemas around town and is worth the effort.  

Indeed it's a blessing in the current drought of quality films out there.

Set in the seventies, Cameron has a small science show on a small public TV station. His show is as corny as anything, but effective in explaining things to the kids. However, it's struggling with the ratings.  His wife, Erin used to do the show with him, but she has moved on to something a little more substantial and now works in management at the local space exploration museum. The pair of them are obsessed with space and space exploration.  

However, it's not just the TV show that Cameron's wife is fed up with, she is feeling the same about their marriage.

Take your protein pills and put your helmet on

Riding his bike home one afternoon, Cameron is nearly hit by a car.  The car seems to come out of nowhere, like it was dropped from the sky.  It lands on its roof.  Cameron is amazed to see the driver looks remarkably like a younger version of himself.  

Later, he is as equally surprised to learn that the same fellow is moving in to the house across the road, is applying for Cameron's job, and that his son Marc, is seeing his daughter.

The daughter, Nora attends the local high. She took a shine to Marc as soon as she met him.  Nora and Marc grow close.  They become best friends rather than sooky teen lovers.

Then a greater surprise.  Part of a space ship falls from the sky and lands in their backyard.  The house and yard is secured by national security and they are told they can not live in their own home for a while.  They move in with Erin's sister.  

Fed up with the situation with his TV show, hurt by his failing marriage, certain that he will never achieve anything in life,  Cameron ignores the ruling and returns to his own home. He exhumes the fallen space ship and takes it upon himself to re-build it in his garage.  

He always did want to be an astronaut anyway, so perhaps now is the time to give it a real go.

Cameron is regularly seeing his own father.  He is a very old man now. He is in a nursing home and suffering from senile dementia.  I don't want to give any spoilers here, but Cameron's father is the key to all this. He is the one that is going to explain it all away.  And things will need to be explained!

As the film progresses many strange and illogical events occur.  Some people behave in a confusing and improper manner, ranging from quirky to straight out mad!  Odd and incidental props are everywhere.

Back to his space ship: Does he take off? Well yes and no. It's worth the journey to find out.  

In the end we will have an epiphany as to who's story this is and what has been going on.  The props suddenly make sense, as do a many other strange instances.  Though a little more clarity would have helped.

As for the title, that's well and truly got me beat!