I have had some bad luck lately with quirky indie movies, so I was only half-heartedly ready to watch this. But, one lonely December afternoon, I was pleasantly surprised to find this little confection and discover that, if you worked with it, it could be delightful and rewarding. At times a morality play, other times a human nature study, it eventually becomes a later-life voyage to self-discovery that delivered the emotional payoff, but not without taking a few odd twists and turns along the way. Much has been said about the major female character, Meris, and her anxiety and depressed states being unnerving and annoying. I have a sister-in-law who is very similar to Meris, and I have to sometimes back pedal in our interactions to bring things down to her contemplative, sheepish level of expression, but I always find the things she says and does worthwhile, so maybe that's why I felt like I could relate to Meris.
Stylistically, and this is what I had to work with the most, the directorial style-at times dizzyingly cartoonish, somber POV, and the subjective static shots added as visual punctuation-was hard to deal with sometimes, as it pulled the action out of the conventional narrative. But if you can stand Gus Van Sant or god forbid Terence Malick, you'll have no problem with this movie and its pacing.
The characters were the true star of this film. Besides Meris, there's her new husband and his socially constipated friends who are obviously too ingrained in their own culture to be a part of the couple's life in a good way. The action picks up as Meris works at the candy store, and really takes off when the lively and luscious Trudy shows up with her rampant sexuality and supermodel/tomboy looks. Be ready for the world's worst sex scene with a hilariously understated real-life '90's rock star, and the appearance of a post-punk stoner dude whose claim to fame and popularity is his ability to "vomit on cue."
Stylistically, and this is what I had to work with the most, the directorial style-at times dizzyingly cartoonish, somber POV, and the subjective static shots added as visual punctuation-was hard to deal with sometimes, as it pulled the action out of the conventional narrative. But if you can stand Gus Van Sant or god forbid Terence Malick, you'll have no problem with this movie and its pacing.
The characters were the true star of this film. Besides Meris, there's her new husband and his socially constipated friends who are obviously too ingrained in their own culture to be a part of the couple's life in a good way. The action picks up as Meris works at the candy store, and really takes off when the lively and luscious Trudy shows up with her rampant sexuality and supermodel/tomboy looks. Be ready for the world's worst sex scene with a hilariously understated real-life '90's rock star, and the appearance of a post-punk stoner dude whose claim to fame and popularity is his ability to "vomit on cue."