10 Items or Less

Some months ago George Lucas of Star Wars fame announced that he would stop directing films. He went on to say that Hollywood has abandoned quality films to concentrate on so-called 'blockbusters'. This is precisely the sentiment that makes this film so endearing.

Morgan Freeman stars with Paz Vega as a semi-retired actor. Although he has made no films in a long while, his face and name still carry notoriety. In researching a likely role he encounters a supermarket cashier (Vega) in an Hispanic grocery store. She operates the '10 items or less' register.

Abandoned in a part of town with little access, they embark upon a tenuous friendship. She wants to leave her cashier position and Freeman becomes her coach. He draws a parallel between applying for a new job and landing a role in a new movie. Everything is actually an audition.

They are friends riding through town in her slightly trashed Pinto. There is no sex, no kissing, no lasting relationship apart from this time they share as she ferries him back to Brentwood and his family. The two leave indelible marks on one another as he shares observations and she acquaints him with her life experience.

This is a fine film with no explosions, little intrigue, and certainly no beasts (apart from the supermarket manager). A gentle film that might more closely resemble a reality TV show as Freeman mixes and mingles with everyone from car wash employees to receptionists.

Not so heady as 'My Dinner With Andre'. A warm, decent movie with some infamous language and few if any other shocks. It is the story of people who meet.

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