In The Planters, Martha Plant (Alexandra Kotcheff) likes to plant things for money. Things that aren’t plants, but more of what you could call “hidden treasures.” Truthfully, it’s just random riffraff she steals from a local antique store. On one of her digging expeditions, a woman in a wedding dress with a helmet on runs straight into her. Obviously, she ain’t right. Her name is Sadie Mayflower (Hannah Leder), but that’s only one of a few names she goes by. Martha takes her in, and Sadie’s multiple personalities make themselves right at home.
Kotcheff and Leder are the directors, writers, and the entire crew for that matter. They are a dynamic duo with an aberrant voice presenting a quirky, charming comedy about friendship. Martha is about as unsocial as humanly possible. When she’s not out with her shovel, she’s on the phone as a telemarketer trying to sell air conditioners. This should come as no surprise when I tell you she’s horrible at it. However, Sadie being the social butterfly that she can be, gives Martha some valuable pointers that turns her into a top-seller. Through those random sales calls, Martha meets Richard Cox (Phil Parolisi). He’s the closest to a romantic partner that she’s ever had and he soon pops up in her little desert town. Coincidence? I think not.
Martha brings Sadie and Richard along as she attempts to capture the culprit responsible for forcing her booming burial business to come to a screeching halt. Every tin can put in the ground filled with something magical comes up empty with no cash to show for it. No one messes with Plant’s plantings! Does it matter who it is? Not really. What’s important is it’s a whole new world for Martha as she shares her life with others for a change. Her and Sadie meeting is hands down meant to be. They shouldn’t be friends, but they are and better for it. The oddness Kotcheff and Leder bring to The Planters is never off-putting because its heart is always in the right place. That tends to happen when what you’re creating is a labor of love. Plus, weirdness can be gratifying every now and then.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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