Love Etc.

No relation to the Bel Kaufman novel of the same title, filmmaker Jill Andresevic's documentary—which aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network—follows several New Yorkers of various backgrounds during adventures in romance. Long-married music teacher-composer Albert copes with the onset of dementia in his cherished wife, Marion. Ethan, recently divorced and still hurting (despite a hard-charging working-stiff exterior), tries his luck at Match.com, dating again at the age of 41. Chitra and Mahendra have been engaged for two years, yet stumble early on in their marriage. Teens Gabriel and Danielle are in first-love bliss, but will it survive the separation of going to different colleges? The definition of "love" stretches to include gay male Broadway-ite Scott, a single man whose heartfelt pursuit is to adopt a child by himself. Scott's story is interwoven with the ups and downs of the other couples but feels like it wandered in from a different film. The ethnic-mosaic NYC milieu is also very much a part of the story, as the individuals are strongly identified with their neighborhoods and social strata (Brooklyn, Forest Hills, Jamaica Hills). While none of the material is especially groundbreaking, the bittersweet emotions are universal and honest, and Andresevic's intimate cinema vérité style is a welcome change from the histrionics of reality TV. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)