Britney Baby: One More Time

This is the directorial feature debut of Ludi Boeken, a war correspondent who went on to produce films by Robert Altman and Sam Shepard. These lofty credentials belie a project that feels more like the concept of a stoned film major. The film is loosely based on the true story behind Robert Stephens, who stars as himself, the young winner of a local Britney Spears look-alike contest. Mark Borchardt and Mike Schank, the protagonists of the award-winning documentary American Movie, return to the screen here as Dude Schmitz and Mike, characters strongly based on their very distinct and real personalities. The narrative, such as it is, has Dude and Mike driving the Britney impersonator around as they try to hoodwink a news station into believing that they are on the road with the real Britney. The conceit is not without a low-budget charm, and fans of American Movie will relish the return of Mark and Mike. Otherwise, this is a hard sell to either mainstream audiences or would-be distributors. (See interview.)