Institute History
Description
Chillicothe is a dry, witty comedy that follows a year in the life of six college friends who find themselves trapped in a rut after college. It has been four years since graduation, and Wade Hinkle, the group’s most cynical bachelor, is still stewing over the loss of his social life. After a series of weddings breaks the group apart, the death of a college rival changes Wade’s perspective on life and how to live it.
The film’s strength lies in ensemble performances that convey the feeling that these actors truly are these characters. That feeling of reality enables the film to provide scrupulous insight into the current state of twenty-something angst and emotion in Middle America. Chillicothe is definitely not the first low-budget comedy to examine life, love, and friendship introspectively within a small town, but it’s one of the most effective. It accurately examines universal questions and situations with a fresh feeling due to a sharp visual style unique in films of this type. Its refreshing Oklahoma setting is another integral element in the effectiveness of the film’s theme and humor.
Todd Edwards avoids the pitfalls of many writer/directors who cast themselves in their own movies, delivering an extremely natural performance as well as enlisting his real brother to play that role in the film. Together the entire cast captures the humor and frustration of a time when the line between the dreams of childhood and the reality of maturity is blurring.
Todd Edwards, Director
Todd Edwards has been making films on Super 8 and video since he was a child growing up in Columbus, Ohio. He received a bachelor’s degree in visual art from Anderson University in Indiana. Chillicothe is a fictional account loosely based on the four years he spent working in the small film community of Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is his first feature-length film.