I’M IN LOVE. MORE PLEASE!

A review of a movie that should go on everyone’s Netflix queue.
By Pam Quinn (Writer)

I watched this last week:

I absolutely love when a movie comes along that I fall in love with. It’s been a while that a movie affected me beyond ‘havin’ a good time’ or ‘an excuse to break my diet with popcorn’. This movie had been on my list for a while, I kept moving it down and down the list as more and more time passed since its release. I’m a fan of...

And when I heard that our “Ted” (Josh Radnor) had written and directed a movie, I decided that I would support this notion, as the last brown haired, up and coming TV star had made...

And I thoroughly enjoyed that movie (despite its obvious flaws). Happythankyoumore looked like a winner, but for whatever reason... I hadn’t gotten around to watching it. Until last week when a movie channel allowed me to add it to my DVR. Let me start off my saying that the dialogue leaves much to be desired... but the MUCH is covered in the performances. Each actor in this movie does an incredible job with dialogue that’s... a little self indulgent. The plot is beautiful in it’s simplicity though. If you’re able to peel back the cliches and really see the honesty behind this first time director’s efforts, you will REALLY enjoy yourself. 

The movie is about a guy named Sam (Josh Radnor) who is pushing 30 and struggling to turn his short story writing success into more of a “committed" novel. On his way to an important meeting, he runs into a foster kid who loses track of his foster family and he volunteers himself to take responsibility for him. Ushering him to the police station causes Radnor to be late for this meeting, thus creating a path that he hadn’t planned on. At the same time, Sam’s alopecia-suffering best friend Annie (Malin Akerman) has to make a choice between a comfortably awful romantic rut and a promising untraveled option. Radnor’s cousin and pal Mary Catherine (Zoe Kazan) reunites with her boyfriend (Bram Barouh) after he returns from a trip to Los Angeles unsure if New York is where he should be.  At the end of the day, our hero confronts his burgeoning attraction to waitress-singer Mississippi (Kate Mara) and offers her an option he’s not even sure he’s ready for, Malin is told to finally close her eyes and listen to the words coming out of those who love her (Tony Hale) and The one thing LA is missing becomes very clear to the struggling couple.

I can’t say it enough, but the acting in this film is really the most impressive part. It was so well cast. There was not one weak link (well... maybe the foster boy.) One of my favorite aspects was how you begin to focus and care about Josh’s character and don’t realize what an ensemble piece the film becomes by the end. You are really rooting for everyone in this movie. Especially, in my opinion, Malin Ackerman’s character. You are side by side with her on her journey with Tony Hale’s character. We’re used to THIS Tony Hale:

So, we see this guy hanging around all the time, taking pictures... being a little awkward and we’re uncomfortable and we want him to go away. Then, we start to look at him a little differently and then, by the end, we’re in love with him. 'We open our eyes and we see a really beautiful man sitting in front of us'

I really look forward to seeing what Josh will pull out of his sleeve next. Until then... I really look forward to next season’s HIMYM! Now "go, get yourself loved"

PAM QUINN Moved to California from New York at age 14 and entered the professional world of writing at 17 on the west coast. By her 20th birthday she had three original works produced in the Los Angeles area. Rising from sketch comedy writing and a background in theatre, Pam collected what she had learned over the years and compiled it into playwriting. She began collaborating on an idea for an original musical (Right Together, Left Together) with Will Collyer and Jacob Harvey. Since moving back to New York in ’05, Pam hasn’t stopped breathing this idea. She co-founded The Unknown Artists (www.theunknownartists.org) with Emily Clark and continues to be prolific within this fantastic company. www.uaplayclub.wordpress.com
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Comments

[Loren A. Roberts (guru of multi-hyphenate media)]

Pam: The movie that is running through the festival circuit right now entitled "Not That Funny" (on which I was a producer -- I know, shameless self-promotion) has another of Tony's completely wonderful, less comedic, but beautiful, roles. I'm so glad that you found Happythankyoumoreplease; I agree that we're used to seeing the Tony from "Arrested Development" and "Chuck" but his dramatic roles are equally as engaging and awesome (I remember one line from him in "Stranger Than Fiction" that still gets me every time I watch it).