TADPOLE
A quirky little film shot in two weeks on a shoestring budget, Tadpole was one of the finds at last year’s Sundance Festival. Oscar Grubman (Aaron Stanford) is an intelligent fifteen-year old with a problem. He is hopelessly in love with his stepmother Eve (Sigourney Weaver), a scientist who married his dad (John Ritter) after his first marriage to Oscar’s mom dissolved. Things become complicated when Oscar sleeps with Eve’s best friend Diane (Bebe Neuwirth), intoxicated by the fragrance of the scarf Diane happened to borrow from Eve. It’s a wickedly funny scene, and one that displays how blinded by love he is. It’s The Graduate by way of Oedipus Rex. Despite its unusual subject, Tadpole works on many levels. Aaron Stanford is terrific as the love-sick Oscar, but it is Bebe Neuwirth who steals the show. As the 40-something temptress Diane, she wrings every bit of impish humor from the character, but it is Sigourney Weaver in the less showier role who provides the emotional core of the film. As Eve, a woman married to her work as much as her husband, her reaction to Oscar’s advances provides real feeling, a sensitive turn that deepens the story. Tadpole is a funny, insightful coming-of-age story with great performances.
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