Review of Mistress America (2015) by Tor M — 15 Sep 2015

Art house attempt at smart witty and funny falls short (60/100).

This is my first RT review ever!

I wanted to like this movie. I run a movie meetup and wish to show people different, non-Hollywood-indie movies and hopefully widen their cinematic horizons. This is not a good gateway movie for that. Baumbach did Frances Ha which I did not really like; While We're Young was decent; I remember liking The Squid and the Whale and thinking Fantastic Mr. Fox was overrated.

This film has a 82% RT rating and a 7.4/10 rating. Usually, a 82% RT rating gets under 7.0/10 and a 7.4 rating gets 88% and above. These numbers says the film is polarizing: some critics love it, while others hate it or are indifferent.

I theorize that it is this way because it has an art house aesthetic. There is stuff out there that people who study a medium think is important to have in the medium but most people who were not told to like that in the first place do not care for. Most people, on their own, do not get Shakespeare. It is inaccessible in today's world. You have to be taught in school why it is valuable and important, and some people buy into it and make that value their own and some do not. Most people do not make the art house aesthetic they're own, though critics tend to lean towards it more than the general populous. Art house is here, so some critics will rave about this film. I will not.

In the movie, Tracey criticizes Dylan for trying to be something he wants to be but is something he is not. Viewers are likely to do that with this film. It wants to be smart, funny and witty, but really it is none of those things. None of the characters are likable or reflect real people in the real world. As a result, there is no emotional connection to the characters, and we care little what happens to them. I think the director is trying to sell us on the idea that there is something special, wonderful, charming and unique about Brooke despite her faults, but that does not come across.

In addition, I don't believe any of the actors playing 18-year-olds are really of that age. The humour the movie is attempting is random and quirky: this plot twist or dialogue is unexpected so it will be funny. Most often, it is not. This type of humour also disrupts the pacing and flow and makes the movie awkward and uneven.

In the end, it was quite disappointing.