My First Mister

A grumpy Goth teenager (Leelee Sobieski) takes a stock girl job at a mall clothing store for middle-aged squares and, much to her surprise, becomes friends with the fuddy-duddy manager (the forever self-mocking Albert Brooks). While the talented leads keep the characters appealing (if not entirely credible) as they grow bizarrely but platonically fond of each other, actress-cum-director Christine Lahti lets the movie's raw charm and amusing sarcasm slip away as Sobieski finds her sunnier side, abandoning the more radical elements of her lifestyle and wardrobe. Apparently, happiness and facial piercings are mutually exclusive in this fantasy for fortysomethings about the warm heart they hope exists underneath the surly angst of today's scary teenage rebels. Not a necessary purchase. (R. Blackwelder)