The Brass Teapot | |
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Directed by | Ramaa Mosley |
Written by | Tim Macy |
Starring |
Juno Temple Michael Angarano Alexis Bledel Alia Shawkat Bobby Moynihan |
Music by | Andrew Hewitt |
Distributed by | Magnolia Pictures |
Release date
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Running time
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101 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $6,997 |
The Brass Teapot is a 2013 American film directed by Ramaa Mosley. The movie's script was written by Tim Macy, who also wrote the short story on which the movie is based. The movie premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2012, and was released into theaters and video on demand on April 5, 2013.
Critical reception for the film was mixed. Film.com review said "Despite the sometimes patchy moments The Brass Teapot by and large squeaks by as an enjoyable entertainment." The Playlist commented that "With the help of a talented cast, The Brass Teapot is able to coast on charm."
Hitflix writes "It is apparent that Ramaa Mosley has a voice, and that The Brass Teapot is a focused, controlled piece of storytelling that displays real control". Wall Street Journal reviews says "Alice and John are good company — especially Alice, thanks to Ms. Temple's buoyant humor and lovely poignancy. The problem comes when the couple gets greedy, the gods grow angry and the tone turns dark. It doesn't stay dark, but getting back to the brightness is a painful process." The Brass Teapot holds 5 stars on Netflix and was nominated for International Critics' Award (2013) for The Brass Teapot and nominated, Discovery Award for The Brass Teapot (2013).
The movie follows John (Michael Angarano) and Alice (Juno Temple), a down on their luck couple that comes across a magical brass teapot capable of providing them with money. The only catch is that they must harm themselves in order for the teapot to provide. They must then decide what they are willing to do in order to gain financial security.
Critical reception for the film was poor, with The Brass Teapot holding a rating of 33% "rotten" on Rotten Tomatoes based on 30 reviews. The New York Times criticized the film, saying that while the two lead characters were interesting, the "movie’s best bits lose out to the requisite moral turnaround". The Film School Rejects commented that the darker points of the film's story line were "ill fitting" in contrast with the predominantly "comically light and slapsticky" tone of the overall movie. In contrast, Variety gave a more positive review for the film, saying that Mosely "makes her low-budget enterprise look as slick as most midrange studio comedies, demonstrating herself a director with both imagination and technical ingenuity".