Of Magical Cactus & Rare Road Trips

Road trip, magical cactus, beautiful scenery, and Michael Cera. I think I want to join these people and hit the road as well.

Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus and 2012 (2013)

A Sebastián Silva film

While traveling in Chile, Jamie (Michael Cera) invites an eccentric woman (Gaby Hoffman) to join his group's road trip adventure in finding a fabled hallucinogen.

Getting past the narrative because there is not much to it but a simple road trip documentation, the film remains weirdly fascinating. With the great portion of the movie involving drugs, well, it sure is fascinating. However, unlike the usual psychological film (because it does not actually fall on that genre), Crystal Fairy & The Magical Cactus and 2012 has the perfect balance for moments of complete high and clarity. With Silva's creative direction, the film's improvisation had coordinated well in its every aspect. But really, the true superstar here was Michael fucking Cera. After his definitive trademark on movies, we see this actor (finally! (side note: I always knew he had it in him)) breaks into the cage of his stereotypical wooing-the-girl-of-his dream roles as an obnoxious coke-snorting American. And he pulled it off. Gaby Hoffman was also remarkable in her performance as a nature-loving hippie. Though the characters are a bit comical, they are actually the ones that engage the audience. Fun, light and easy to watch.