Jack (Luke Perry as the older version, Alex Shaffer as the younger) helps a stranded motorist fix his car in a rural area of the South. As he works, Jack tells the gentleman the tale of "how he met his mother". When he was a teen, Alex. who was adopted, had a fight with his mother and drives off to see if he can find his birth mother. All he knows is that she hangs out at a nearby, 24 hour eatery, The Griddle House. Trying to slip in without much fanfare, Jack soon gets caught up in the kind and zany workers at the place. Maybee, er Maybelline (Charisma Carpenter) is sweet and attentive; she may be Jack's mother. Also possibilities include another waitress named Francis, who convinces Jack to order some hot cocoa, and a hooker named Tiny, who has stopped in for a breather before her "busy" New Year's Eve. As the crazy cook, Amos (Paul Rodriguez) asks Jack to punch in a song on the jukebox, the entire cooking crew does a dance. There is an older man who sits all day at one of the stools and a quiet busboy who wears a bow tie and is constantly cleaning. As the evening wears on, a police officer ushers in a shoplifter but chains him to the counter when he called out on a more important matter. As can be expected, this petty thief is angry and demeaning. Asking each of the possible ladies some sly questions, Jack thinks he has it figured out. But, does he? This slice of life film has a subdued strength and some really fine performances. Rodriquez is always a welcome hoot and Carpenter is loveliness itself. In truth. all of the actors do their parts quite nicely. Important as well are the themes, where forgiveness and kindness are the major take-aways of the day. In fact, this Griddle House is kind of a miracle worker for all those who enter in. Want to feel good about humanity after all? Order up The Griddle House.

I don't understand the over-the-top negative reviews of this movie. It's as though the viewers were expecting a blockbuster, over-produced cinematic home run. Expectations are different for independent movies - not lower - but different. I expected and enjoyed the interwoven stories and characters that inhabited The Griddle House. It almost felt like I was watching a production at the local playhouse, where all the characters and actors were approachable and believable. The only thing that keeps me from rating this movie higher is the volume of the ambient music; it overshadowed much of the dialogue.

I have a genuine theory that every character in this film is a robot replicating a human being but not quite well enough. Something about these characters, the way they acted, spoke and the things they chose to do all just sat wrong with me and didn't feel human.