Actor-turned-director Todd Louiso's third film—nominated for the Grand Jury prize at Sundance—plays a bit like The Graduate for a new era, just as funny and every bit as poignant. Melanie Lynskey plays Amy Minsky, moving back to Cheever Country—upper-class Connecticut—after a divorce. Just as Dustin Hoffman's Benjamin Braddock didn't know what to do with his life, former photography student Amy is also at a loss. When her parents, Ruth and Stan (Blythe Danner and John Rubinstein), hold a dinner party, Amy meets 19-year-old Jeremy (Christopher Abbott), son of a therapist who is a potential client for Stan. If Stan can win over Jeremy's father, he plans to retire and go on a long-awaited cruise with his restless and hyper-judgmental wife. Jeremy, a former child star, has become a theater actor, but internally he's just as lost as Amy. In a moment of privacy, Jeremy steals a kiss with Amy, which isn't unwelcome. Not suspecting a thing, Jeremy's parents encourage Amy to show him around Westport, which leads to a surreptitious affair (Jeremy's mother thinks he's gay), while Amy worries about their 16-year age difference. Benefiting from a perceptive, humorously profane script by Louiso's wife, Sarah Koskoff, this is highly recommended. [Note: DVD extras include interviews with director Todd Louiso and writer Sarah Koskoff (12 min.), an interview of star Melanie Lynskey by journalist David Poland (9 min.), and a trailer. Bottom line: a small but solid extras package for a winning indie film.] (K. Fennessy)
Hello I Must Be Going
Oscilloscope, 95 min., R, DVD: $29.99, Jan. 29 Volume 28, Issue 1
Hello I Must Be Going
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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