CONGRATULATIONS! Breakthrough

The search for a missing boy takes a turn for the bizarre in director Mike Brune’s debut feature CONGRATULATIONS! When little Paul Gray disappears from his oldest brother’s graduation party, local police are on the scene within hours, led by Detective Skok (John Curran). The grizzled old sleuth has a peculiar style, to say the least:  he restricts his search to the Gray’s household, his officers take up residence in the home to pitch-in with the chores and the toughest questioning is reserved for Paul’s angel-faced 4 year old brother. Brune has crafted an utterly brilliant absurdist comedy that takes frequent trips into the surreal. He also infuses his film with a palpable sense of loss and longing, evident in Curran’s deliciously deadpan turn as Detective Skok and in Rhoda Griffis’ tour de force as Paul’s mother, whose desperation manifests itself in frantic reenactments of Paul’s disappearance.