Mistress America (A-) Movie Review
Mistress America stars Lola Kirke (younger sister of Girls' Jemima Kirke) as Tracy, an 18-year-old living in NYC for college who's disillusioned by her unexciting life in the "Big Apple." She meets her soon-to-be sister Brooke, played by Greta Gerwig, and is soon caught up in the whirlwind of Brooke's life, but what Brooke doesn't know is that Tracy is taking notes.
The second Noah Baumbach film of this year, the other being While We're Young, is more in the vein of his previous film Frances Ha, also starring Gerwig. Mistress America and Frances Ha make a great double feature because although both have similar themes of an obsession with failure, both bring something different to the table. Frances Ha is melancholic in its portrayal of millennial life while Mistress America is a tribute to 80s comedies, but still feeling relevant and important, and a wonderfully hilarious film.
Greta Gerwig's Brooke is one of the most interesting characters to grace screens in a very long time. I hate to use the word "quirky" because it's kind of become a cliche of late, but Brooke is very quirky and endlessly fun to watch. She claims to "know everything about herself" and is always changing career trajectories. Does she want to own a restaurant? Does she want to be an SAT tutor? Whatever she wants to do, she's fascinating and I can't speak for everyone, but Brooke hit uncomfortably close to home for me. She's complex and consistently hilarious.
Gerwig is an amazing talent. She also co-wrote this fantastic screenplay with director Noah Baumbach that's so funny but so honest at the same time. It truly is a marvelous screenplay, one that along with being endlessly quotable (there's some great stuff here) is also thematically rich. The idea of failure permeates this film; Tracy and her friend fail to get into the lit society at her school and Brooke can't find success in any career path. Like Frances Ha did a few years ago, Mistress America speaks especially towards millennials with a soft sympathy for them, unlike While We're Young which felt more condescending in its view of millennials and spoke mainly to an older generation.
The film's run time is a brisk one but a surprising amount of story is packed in tight. It's a very fast watch but has a staying ability. It's superfluously entertaining and I have trouble imagining someone being bored with this film. There are so many zany characters that aren't necessarily two dimensional, it's just that a lot of what they say feeds into a certain persona that they're matched with, and there are so many wacky subplots and one-liners.
Baumbach switches tones with comfort and style. This film could easily have been a tonally misguided endeavor but the comedy and tragedy balance out quite nicely. Baumbach is a very good director, one of the best indie directors working today, and proves that again here by drawing the best out of Gerwig, finding poignant shots, and fun dialogue.
I have very little complaints about this film. For a bit in the beginning of the film, the dialogue can feel a bit awkward or fake but as the film progresses, this either fades or becomes unnoticeable and watching it a second time around, it was completely unnoticeable. Lola Kirke's performance was, in my opinion, a bit wooden but she's a new actress and Gerwig could overshadow any scene partner.
I was floored by how much I enjoyed Mistress America. It's insanely witty, stylish, profound, quotable, and hilarious. A wise and honest film that perfectly showcases Gerwig's talent. Mistress America is one of the most underrated films of the year and a true gem.
FINAL GRADE: A-
MPAA RATING: R for language including some sexual references
The second Noah Baumbach film of this year, the other being While We're Young, is more in the vein of his previous film Frances Ha, also starring Gerwig. Mistress America and Frances Ha make a great double feature because although both have similar themes of an obsession with failure, both bring something different to the table. Frances Ha is melancholic in its portrayal of millennial life while Mistress America is a tribute to 80s comedies, but still feeling relevant and important, and a wonderfully hilarious film.
Greta Gerwig's Brooke is one of the most interesting characters to grace screens in a very long time. I hate to use the word "quirky" because it's kind of become a cliche of late, but Brooke is very quirky and endlessly fun to watch. She claims to "know everything about herself" and is always changing career trajectories. Does she want to own a restaurant? Does she want to be an SAT tutor? Whatever she wants to do, she's fascinating and I can't speak for everyone, but Brooke hit uncomfortably close to home for me. She's complex and consistently hilarious.
Gerwig is an amazing talent. She also co-wrote this fantastic screenplay with director Noah Baumbach that's so funny but so honest at the same time. It truly is a marvelous screenplay, one that along with being endlessly quotable (there's some great stuff here) is also thematically rich. The idea of failure permeates this film; Tracy and her friend fail to get into the lit society at her school and Brooke can't find success in any career path. Like Frances Ha did a few years ago, Mistress America speaks especially towards millennials with a soft sympathy for them, unlike While We're Young which felt more condescending in its view of millennials and spoke mainly to an older generation.
The film's run time is a brisk one but a surprising amount of story is packed in tight. It's a very fast watch but has a staying ability. It's superfluously entertaining and I have trouble imagining someone being bored with this film. There are so many zany characters that aren't necessarily two dimensional, it's just that a lot of what they say feeds into a certain persona that they're matched with, and there are so many wacky subplots and one-liners.
Baumbach switches tones with comfort and style. This film could easily have been a tonally misguided endeavor but the comedy and tragedy balance out quite nicely. Baumbach is a very good director, one of the best indie directors working today, and proves that again here by drawing the best out of Gerwig, finding poignant shots, and fun dialogue.
I have very little complaints about this film. For a bit in the beginning of the film, the dialogue can feel a bit awkward or fake but as the film progresses, this either fades or becomes unnoticeable and watching it a second time around, it was completely unnoticeable. Lola Kirke's performance was, in my opinion, a bit wooden but she's a new actress and Gerwig could overshadow any scene partner.
I was floored by how much I enjoyed Mistress America. It's insanely witty, stylish, profound, quotable, and hilarious. A wise and honest film that perfectly showcases Gerwig's talent. Mistress America is one of the most underrated films of the year and a true gem.
FINAL GRADE: A-
MPAA RATING: R for language including some sexual references