Review of Tiny Furniture (2010) by Lorenzo V — 12 Jul 2012

"Aura would like you to know that she is having a very, very hard time.".

About a recent college grad who returns home while she tries to figure out what to do with her life.

REVIEW.

A young woman comes home after graduating from college and tries to get her life together as she deals with her mom, her sister, some friends and two potential boyfriends. The indie darling film is both much better than I expected but not as good as I hoped. Don't get me wrong its a good movie and worth a look, I just was bothered by a few things. First up some of the performances are uneven. Lena Dunham who wrote, directed and stars in the film is good, but erratic in her performance, I think largely because she's doing too much. The guy who plays the slacker who latches on to her and leaches from her for a couple of weeks is so dead pan as to be nearly dead. The character is also so unlikable you don't see what out heroine sees in him (his philosophical cowboy is not even clever). The other people are mostly good, with Dunham's mom hitting one out of the park in every scene she's in. Another problem I have is that while the camera work looks great its rather static and unremarkable. I understand Dunham was working under constraints but it makes the film feel like any number of indie films, which it really isn't. On the other hand the script is often witty and on target (why the film isn't like many independent films recently). I really liked much of the dialog even if the drama is uneven. If anything, Dunham's directorial debut is a good precursor for greater things to come as her successfully lauded HBO show "Girls" is earning tons of praise from both critics and audience alike.