Movie Review: 'Rollers' is a Warm and Inviting Dramatic Comedy

Rollers is the rare movie about an alcoholic character that portrays the often mundane nature of alcoholism. People tend to focus on the rock bottom aspects of alcoholism but rarely is there a story told about someone in the midst of their problems, before everything falls apart, before alcoholism becomes something that ruins a life. Much of the life of an alcoholic can be a rollercoaster ride for family and friends but often alcoholism isn’t something you recognize right away, it’s a series of seemingly unconnected nights of drinking that only begin to add up over a long period of time.

Rollers stars Johnny Ray Gill as Rufus Paisley, the owner of a concert venue and bar called Rollers. Rollers has been in existence in this Atlanta suburb for over 100 years and has been in Rufus’ family just as long. Now, however, with big business creep coming into every suburb of Atlanta, Rollers faces a major crossroads. Rufus can sell the venue and watch it be torn down for condos or some such sprawl, or he can fight to keep it open by swallowing his pride and calling in some favors.

This raises a unique dramatic dilemma: Does Rufus actually want to save Rollers? On the surface, he appears to want to keep the venue alive. Privately however, almost subconsciously, he appears to be ready to undermine himself and the business. Either through petty arguments or spending nights getting very, very drunk and failing to accomplish anything, Rufus isn't necessarily self-destructive but rather someone having an existential crisis regarding their identity. Who is Rufus? A concert promoter? A musician? A failure? He's quietly wrestling with all o these questions and each is very compelling.

Rollers is at its best in these moments when Rufus should be focused on saving his business and he’s more interested in having a good time and keeping up his flirtation with Jane (Kate Cobb), a longtime friend and fellow musician. Kate has returned from being on the road and has just broken up her band. She’s nearly as lost as Rufus is and the two bounce around each other flirting and bickering playfully. The chemistry between Gill and Cobb is lovely, warm and quite funny.

The remaining supporting players also have their charms and are well deployed in the colorful universe of Rollers. Kevin Bigley is the most recognizable member of the cast having recently co-starred in the Amazon Prime series Upload. Here, he plays Rufus’ Business Manager of questionable credentials. Another of Rufus’ childhood friends, Bigley’s Donnie is more an enabling playmate than a responsible business partner. It’s not hard to imagine that Rufus keeps Donnie around for nostalgia more than actual business acumen.

And yet, despite all of the issues, despite mismanagement and too much drinking, there is a good chance that Rollers can be saved from the wrecking ball. We find out along the way that Rufus had a best friend, someone he was in a band with years earlier that is now a huge star. Tyler, played by Joel Allen, is in between successful tours and would likely be eager to help save Rollers by playing a show there.

However, the falling out between Tyler and Rufus still weighs on them both. Rufus bailed on their band just as they were about to sign a record deal and perhaps become big stars. Instead, Rufus came home to run Rollers and Tyler had to start over with a new band. Both have their reasons for being bitter but Rufus’ bitterness is less easy to justify. Rufus is being petty and jealous despite having made the choice to break up their band.

It’s likely that Rufus is trying to sabotage his relationship with Tyler so that he has no way of saving Rollers but that is all in subtext and inference. Writer-director Isaiah Smallman does a wonderful job of layering in a boatload of subtext and motivation while never openly lingering on these aspects. Smallwood is far more interested in letting his characters reveal themselves rather than having the script or plot do the work for them and that creates a wonderful series of scenes where characters are funny, vulnerable, and defensive in ways that speak louder than any expositional dialogue could.

Rollers has a warmth, humor and authenticity that made me absolutely fall in love with these characters. Johnny Ray Gill’s Rufus is a wonderful character exceptionally well played. He’s an alcoholic who doesn’t know he’s an alcoholic yet. He’s amongst a group of friends and family who have yet to realize the depth of his troubles but are supportive and loving toward him to the point where you feel okay in thinking that whatever happens, this group will be okay. You fear for them and you feel for them, but that drama is not the point of Rollers. The point is to simply relate to and care about these characters.

Rollers opens in limited theatrical release and on-demand online rental release on June 25th.