Portrait of a Serial Monogamist

Elsie (Diane Flacks), the fourth-wall-breaking character at the center of Christina Zeidler and John Mitchell's LGBT rom-com, doesn't know how to end relationships. She tries to be kind, but always ends up fumbling the hand-off (she offers her rationalizations to the audience as sheepish confessions). Elsie also doesn't know how to be on her own, so she plunges into new relationships instead. After breaking up with Robyn (Carolyn Taylor), an artist, Elsie hits on Lolli (Vanessa Dunn), an attractive woman she meets in a bar. Lolli, however, just broke up with her boyfriend, and says she's on “a single trip” (she also neglects to say whether or not she likes women). When Elsie isn't stressing about her job at a Toronto TV station—where a takeover is imminent—she's trying to figure out how to fix her love life. One friend encourages her to get back into the dating game, while another bets that she can't stay single for five months. Elsie initially takes that bet, but reconnects and hits it off with Lolli, a blogger and club DJ, eventually leading to an awkward dinner with Elsie's outspoken Jewish family. Not a standard rom-com, the film is ultimately more realistic as it toggles between comedy and drama. A solid character study, this is recommended. (K. Fennessy)