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Cast: Katrina Bowden, Skyler Gisondo, Kristin Chenoweth
Set on the Gold Coast of Long Island, HARD SELL centers on Hardy Buchanan (Gisondo), a senior at an elite private school who struggles to support his unstable mom (Chenoweth). Desperate to make some quick cash, he enlists the help of Bo (Bowden), a beautiful runaway, and together they devise an unconventional plan of profiting off of the wayward teens at Hardy’s school. When the students learn that Bo has more to offer than what meets the eye, the unlikely duo’s new business takes a unique turn, tossing them headfirst into the lifestyles of the rich and dysfunctional.
"Hard Sell" tells the story of Hardy Buchanan a senior at school who really isn't allowed to have the life someone his age should have because he has to take care of his mentally ill mother who also happens to drink too much. Things go from bad to worse for Hardy when he finds out the family dog needs an expensive operation or it will die. Lucky for Hardy he meets a beautiful young lady at a homeless shelter he volunteers at and together they come up with a money making scheme that deals with her exposing herself to Hardy's classmates.
The young lady's name is Bo and she has problems of her own. She tells Hardy that she is a stripper but the fact is she ran away from a mental facility and is on the run from her uncle who is looking to take her back home.
"Hard Sell" may not be perfect and some parts of the story are questionable at best but it has a lot of heart, it is both funny and dramatic. Skyler Gisondo (Vacation, The Amazing Spider-Man) is terrific in his first-leading role as "Hardy," and Emmy and Tony Award winning actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth (Broadway's Wicked, ABC's "Pushing Daisies," Fox's "Glee")is amazing as well as his mom. Katrina Bowden (Tucker and Dale vs. Evil) finishes off the film's leads as Bo, she is talented and beautiful and she lights up the screen.
Like I already said, "Hard Sell" isn't a perfect film but there is a lot more to like than not. It is an engaging coming of age story with lovable characters, it will have you laughing and you might even shed a tear or two as well. The characters are well-developed, the more the film moves along the more we find out about the main characters and their lives. The script's flaws are made up for by the incredible cast.
Momentum Pictures will release HARD SELL in theaters, on VOD and iTunes on May 20. I enjoyed this little dramedy enough to recommend it to fans of drama and comedy. The film was a bit more tame than I thought it would be but that didn't make it any less entertaining.
Released by Momentum Pictures
*** 1/4 Out Of *****