I'm Reed Fish (2006)

55% of critics liked it
(20 reviews)
42% of users liked it
(5,284 ratings)

Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel of Million Dollar Baby and Undeclared) seems to be leading the life he's supposed to. He's followed in the footsteps of his late father, doing an early-morning radio show with the town's mayor, Maureen (Katey Sagal), through which the eccentric locals of Mud Meadows voice… More Reed Fish (Jay Baruchel of Million Dollar Baby and Undeclared) seems to be leading the life he's supposed to. He's followed in the footsteps of his late father, doing an early-morning radio show with the town's mayor, Maureen (Katey Sagal), through which the eccentric locals of Mud Meadows voice their complaints and have them addressed. He produces the show with his old high school buddy, Frank (Victor Rasuk), and he's engaged to be married to another high school chum, the gorgeous Kate Peterson (Alexis Bledel), whose dad (Blake Clark) seems to own every business in town. But Reed's plans are upended when his high school sweetheart, Jill (Schuyler Fisk), comes back to town. She's supposed to be away at law school, but she confides to Reed that she quit school years ago, and has been working as a waitress while she fruitlessly pursues a career in music. Reed encourages her to play on Open Mike Night at the local bar. He inspires her to find her voice, which leads to some complications in his relationship with Kate, forcing Reed to reexamine every aspect of his safe, secure life. I'm Reed Fish also features performances by DJ Qualls, Chris Parnell, and Shiri Appleby. The comedy marks the feature debut of director Zackary Adler, and had its world premiere at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 33 min.
Directed By: Zackary Adler
Written By: Zackary Adler, Reed Fish
Genres: Drama, Comedy

In Theaters: Jun 1, 2007 Wide
On DVD: Sep 4, 2007
Studio: Red Envelope Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
The relentless quirkiness of the proceedings proves wearisome, and the bizarre structural conceit is not enough to compensate for the overly familiar characterizations and story line.
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times
Filled with painfully awkward men with painfully bad haircuts, I'm Reed Fish exhibits less energy than a sloth on Seconal.
Kyle Smith, New York Post
The movie, which looks like it was made on the cheapest camera borrowed from the A/V club, was apparently based on the experience of its writer, Reed Fish, who should either await more interesting experiences or work up some imagination.
Jack Mathews, New York Daily News
Modest charmer about a folksy community radio show host.
John Anderson, Newsday
The acting is good, the turf is familiar, and the mood is sweet without causing diabetes.
Charles Petersen, Village Voice
Add a bunch of indie bands, find a Braff look-alike (Jay Baruchel) to play the lead, top it off with some obscure animal hybrid -- a zorse instead of a liger -- and you've got writer Reed Fish's can't-fail debut.
S. Jhoanna Robledo, Common Sense Media
Kid-friendly rom-com lures but doesn't hook.
David Cornelius, eFilmCritic.com
A breezy, wholly engaging ninety minutes spent with a delightful cast.
Brian Webster, Apollo Guide
There is just one extra on the disc %u2013 a brief but enjoyable behind the scenes featurette.
Brian Webster, Apollo Guide
Standard romantic comedy, but it's done so nicely, and is sufficiently spiced up by an unusual what-am-I-really-watching? storytelling device, that it rises above its genre.
Brian Orndorf, DVDTalk.com
Evoking a smothering sense of poisonous romantic yearning and horrifying personal inventory results, Fish hits those sharp notes of characterization often, in the middle of a plot that dances around convention perhaps one too many times.
Shawn Levy, Oregonian
Even if cast differently, this would be a weird film.
Toddy Burton, Austin Chronicle
Perhaps in more experienced hands, this self-reflection could achieve insight, but as director Adler's first feature and Fish's first produced screenplay, this mess was better left inside the writer's head.
Frank Lovece, Film Journal International
Charms you with a quirkiness that feels oddly genuine and unforced.
Melissa Anderson, Time Out New York
Some nice performances (Fisk is especially appealing as Reed's love interest) and a go-nowhere midfilm meta shift don't propel the movie beyond its pat life-lesson intentions.
Megan Cherkezian, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Fish's tender evocation of being forced by a life-changing epiphany to find the courage to step outside the confines of routine is beautifully realized by an endearing ensemble.
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
Sundance homilies and truisms are encased in a meta frame in I'm Reed Fish.

Read all 17 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Nicki M

Interesting idea for a film, being a movie a guy made about his life within a movie. I was pretty confused at first and found it hard to follow, also not too exciting. It improved as it went on, and I was glad I stuck it out. It is an unusual film and it won't be to… More
Interesting idea for a film, being a movie a guy made about his life within a movie. I was pretty confused at first and found it hard to follow, also not too exciting. It improved as it went on, and I was glad I stuck it out. It is an unusual film and it won't be to everyone's tastes. Needless to say, my mother who likes her movies PG and spelt out, was bored crapless by this one.
Alice S

As the plucky strains of an acoustic guitar played on the DVD menu, I thought, "This looks delightfully indie..." because of course, "indie" can go terribly wrong. I'm Reed Fish does not. It's a captivating story about a small-town… More
As the plucky strains of an acoustic guitar played on the DVD menu, I thought, "This looks delightfully indie..." because of course, "indie" can go terribly wrong. I'm Reed Fish does not. It's a captivating story about a small-town boy-wonder's quarter-life crisis. Deeply-felt performances, a beautiful original soundtrack, and quirky characters who aren't SO quirky that you want to punch them in the face. Schuyler Fisk is brilliant. I loved her as Kristy Thomas in The Baby-Sitters Club, and it's nice to see she's grown into a decent adult actress/singer. I just fell in love with her during her songs. The only qualm I have with this movie is the ending. Reed and the real Jill shouldn't have gotten together. We've spent the entire movie falling in love with fake Jill. Real Jill can't build up nearly enough charm in her brief cameo. If only Jay Baruchel, his face half-shadowed by a dusky lamp, would look me in the eyes and say, "Why aren't we together?" I think I could be happy for the rest of my life.
jay n

Blah
Leigh R

Nice little movie. Odd at the end, but very sweet.
Dean L

The moment this movie started I was a little worried. I'm not sure what it was that made me feel this way. I think it was the notion that I was watching a rather uninteresting kid's diary unfold before my eyes. As it turns out...this was exactly the case. A cute film… More
The moment this movie started I was a little worried. I'm not sure what it was that made me feel this way. I think it was the notion that I was watching a rather uninteresting kid's diary unfold before my eyes. As it turns out...this was exactly the case. A cute film based on the real life of Reed Fish (who has a cameo in the film) is nothing more than a mildly interesting story with a twist that breaks even the slow pace of the movie. It is actually disruptive which is too bad because I believe it was the writer's sole vehicle in attempting to convey his aspirations. Jay Baruchel from Judd Apatow's brood (Undeclared) helps to save this with his pretty believable performance, but there is just not enough meat to chew on. We have love and love lost. We have tragedy. We have life decisions, but this all comes off like some teen soap opera reaching for something that it just cannot have. It isn't a bad film, but it just isn't a good one. Sorry Reed, but your life and realizations are just not that interesting. If you are looking for a bland watch that will offend no one and you simply need to cleanse your palette for the next film to come along this is the one for you. Totally bland. It doesn't even make for a decent sorbet.
Megan S

Cute but the twist was weird and just confused me for the rest of the movie.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic]Like a lot of people, Reed Fish(Jay Baruchel) occasionally oversleeps and is late for work. Unlike most other people, he is the morning DJ for the radio station in Mud Meadows which also used to be his father's job and the show cannot start without him. On… More
[font=Century Gothic]Like a lot of people, Reed Fish(Jay Baruchel) occasionally oversleeps and is late for work. Unlike most other people, he is the morning DJ for the radio station in Mud Meadows which also used to be his father's job and the show cannot start without him. On a personal level, all is fine as he is engaged to Kate(Alexis Bledel). But a possible complication arrives in the person of Jill(Schuyler Fisk), a childhood friend.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"I'm Reed Fish" is nothing basically new. All that keeps it from being yet another hackneyed love triangle with a layer of small town condescension on top is the device of a movie within a movie. But that is not developed enough to make it interesting.[/font]
Jason R

A very well acted film, with a really great plot and a few twists that I thought were pretty original. This are the kind of films I love picking up at the rental store that end up being a great little Indie gem, and it is also a great comedy as well.
Lea L

not bad..
Nate H

Eh. It wasn't what I feared, at least, but a romantic "comedy" with a twist ending? Why?
Leo L

Great movie! Baruchel, Fisk, Bledel, and Appleby are all fantastic! The story plot is very intriguing, and the central concepts intertwine nicely. Love. Friendship. Future. True place in this world. Great music.
Sunil J

I love Alexis Bledel and think she's adorable but this movie is just plain dull.