After having had a long tangent on my writer's block (which you can read here!), I am somewhat ready to write a few reviews, not just because I enjoy sharing my thoughts, but because I want to turn writing into something that, without being cringy, sparks joy.
Not to mention, that I also feel that there are some films out there that I really wish to write about, because I want to make sure that as many people as possible give them a chance. And one of those was:
Let me get the summary from imdb: "A young man who works as a Bar Mitzvah party host strikes up a friendship with a mother and her autistic daughter."
This summer I promised a review of this movie, and I don't want to push it off any longer. First of all, it was exceptionally good. Independent movies have not been on my radar as of late, mostly because very few got made due to covid, but also because of the ones that were bought by publishers, none interested me. In my view, there are two kinds of indie movies: one with an unbearable amount of pain, and those that just show us one chapter of someone's life. They have become repetitive over the years, and I could not bear the pain sometimes, or just the overall emotions the story wished to awake in me; while sometimes these chapters were just... blend. But this movie was anything but blend. Of all the things that I am going to praise, the first has to be the script:
"- What's it like being depressed?
- I don't know. It feels like... like you remember what better feels like and then you do things that you think will make you feel better but they don't. They make it worse. And the things that I'm really scared of doing are probably the things that will help me the most, but I just can't do them."
I loved this movie. It was just excellent. It got me hooked from the first scene. The colors, the music, the cast... it was directed and written by Cooper Raiff, who also plays the main character. This young man has an exceptional career ahead of himself. I have never cared much for Dakota Johnsson, but I had my eyes glued on her every single time she was on screen. Not only did she make this character hers, but the director knew exactly how to work with her. (So in retrospect I am blaming the directors she worked with, as she clearly has talent!) This is and will be my favorite movie with her. Her character Domino, had wonderful dialogues with the main character, Andrew, left me with my mouth open. The friend who suggested we watch it, actually found the movie through a quote from it. And that really hit for me, honestly, I have been collecting quotes from movies for as long as I can remember, and I should just start watching movies based on the quotes I find... That would be a great way to scan for movies.
I do have one criticism, which is something that is an old issue, something that always bothered me in romantic comedies from the 80s and 90s. Domino is about to get married, but she did not have a lot of chemistry with that man, more so with the main character. Obviously, the viewers are rooting for the main characters, but as we know the ending of the movie, it would have made much more sense to cast someone with whom she also has chemistry. And here is where my issue comes in, in all those romantic comedies the main characters were dating the "wrong" person before ending up with the "right" one. But it just made me mad, because why are you with that person?! Of course, a lot of times people are with the wrong person, so it makes sense that "life imitates art", but the fact that they have no chemistry with those people, does not make sense... because you need something that keeps you connected, something that stops us from breaking up with them, something that keeps telling us that we should stay. In this movie, at least, even if I felt that Domino and her fiancée were not the best of couples, the way in which he cared about her and her daughter, simply showcased how he was a great guy. The reasons why she was with him were clear and their wedding scene was very beautiful. I do wish that there would have been more chemistry there, especially because Dakota Johnson had chemistry with anything and everything in this movie...
Before finishing, I also have to praise the child actors in this movie: I have seen far too many unrealistic depictions of kids behaving like 40 year olds when they are teenagers and it has been incredibly upsetting... but what makes this story even more compelling is its simplicity in portrayal of the young characters. Everyone acts their age, everyone behaves accordingly despite deep emotional moments: Andrew babysits Lola (Vanessa Burghardt), who is autistic, and the way she interacts with people also teaches the audience on how to act if you know someone with this kind of condition. And next to Andrew's little brother, David (Evan Assante), you could tell the social issues she has, but it is not something to make her stand out, but something that actually makes her like every other teenager who is discovering themselves and their feelings. And David and Andrew's interactions were incredibly wholesome. Andrew keeps giving help to David, but it is never misogynistic, or weird, or outdated. It is just healthy brotherly advice.
But, if the only thing I can complain about is probably a deliberate choice to highlight the connection between the two main characters, then you can be sure that this is an exceptionally good movie. It really hit when I watched it, and have been recommending it to people who appreciate good independent movies. I can see myself rewatching this film as I think it will hold a different meaning to me at different stages of my life. It is incredible how the best of films can sometimes just fall into our laps, literally out of nowhere, or due to a weird strain of circumstances. But we need to be grateful, and I am definitely grateful for this film! I look forward to more films from this young director, I hope he wins every award available with this movie, and there will be more beautiful stories told through his lenses.
Until the next item on my list!
