The MatchMaker

Let's dispense with the myth of "critical objectivity", shall we? If you're like me, Irish scenery sets your heart soaring; if you're like me, any film starring Janeane Garofolo has to work to lose your interest. Put the two together, and you're just not playing fair. Garofolo plays Marcy Tizard, a second-tier worker for the re-election campaign of a Massachusetts senator (hilariously played by Jay O. Sanders) of Irish ancestry. Trailing badly in the pools, McGlory comes up with a desperate plan to boost his popularity by sending Marcy to find his kin in Ireland. That trip lands Marcy in the middle of a small Irish town's annual matchmaking festival, giving big city girl Garofolo plenty of chances to clash with old world ways. The film is pleasant in a thoroughly inconsequential way, but if you add up all the things about The Matchmaker that are pleasant, you end up with a very pleasant experience. The typical fish-out-of-water premise rarely reeks of formula thanks to Mark Joffe's low-key direction and Garofolo's unique gift for underplaying a reaction take. Objectively speaking, it's 97 minutes of predictable romance spent with a friendly face in a friendly space. Then again, who said anything about objectivity? Moderately recommended. (S. Renshaw)