Reeling Film Festival

by Anna Pulley

Puccini for Beginners (Written and Directed by Maria Maggenti)
 
I have to admit that I was a bit reluctant to watch Maria Maggenti’s second feature film in a decade when I found out her first was The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love. But Maggenti almost instantly put my fears to rest with Puccini for Beginners, which proves to be sassy, sophisticated romantic comedy that gives a fervent nod to the screwball stylings of Woody Allen. A sharp, fast-paced romp through the gawky, no-holds sexual frontier of New York City, Puccini for Beginners proves it’s not over till the commitment-phobic lesbian sings…er commits.
 
Our heroine Allegra (Elizabeth Reaser) is a savvy, over-analytical lesbian writer who can rationalize her way out of anything, until she meets Phillip, (Justin Kirk) a tweedy Philosophy professor who kindles her retro-hetero tendencies. After exchanging some literary banter, the two end up rolling around on Allegra’s Hitachi Magic Wand and Phillip decides to dump his current girlfriend in order to pursue the neurotic, Sex and the City-esque opera lover. Just when “Another One Bites the Dust” starts playing in your head, Allegra meets Grace (Gretchen Mol) who has gone from Betty Paige to Betty Crocker faster than a no-bake cheesecake. Grace typifies the vulnerable, hopelessly clueless rebound and not even her enthusiasm for glass blowing can save her from her teary-eyed annoyingness. Grace also happens to be the woman Phillip just canned, and unbeknownst to all parties involved, the three begin a tentative bisexual love triangle that lands them all on a one-way trainwreck to Awkwardville.
 
Told operatically in three acts, with a cut-to-the-chase prologue and surprise ending, Allegra’s hapless threeway escalates swiftly and steadily, along with her overactive imagination. Pretty soon all of New York is conspiring against her, from her ex-girlfriend’s voicemail to the reprimands of the public transportation speakers as she rides from one lover’s house to the next. The fortuitous meetings of Allegra and her vastly different lovers scale the massive city down to the size of a goat pen and uncanny coincidences continue to abound until the final confrontational outburst. Quick-witted jabs at the institution of marriage, the collision of sexual identity and sexual behavior, and a slightly mocking thumbs up to the straight world’s fascination with lesbian and bisexual chic make this film a heartily entertaining romantic comedy, that’s part Kissing Jessica Stein (they even have the same producer) and part Annie Hall. The minor characters, which include gossiping sushi chefs and the bitchy ex-girlfriend-turned-all-knowing-psychoanalyst, are quite amusing as well.
 
While it mysteriously drops the opera theme a little after Act 1, Puccini for Beginners is a triumphant sophomore film for Maggenti, humorously astute and mature in its dapper approach to finding love in the 24/7 blitzkrieg of big city life.

Red Doors (Written and Directed by Georgia Lee)
 
A compassionate though somewhat cheesy glimpse into the lives of a Chinese-American family grappling with tradition and modernism in suburban New York, Georgia Lee’s debut feature film Red Doors is a charismatic dramedy that’s saccharine, but falls just short of being sappy. The Wong family is in disarray when their recently retired father Ed (Tzi Ma) runs off to a Buddhist monastery after his suicide attempts are repeatedly thwarted by familial interruptions. Samantha, the eldest daughter, (Jacqueline Kim) is a corporate machine engaged to a Ken doll with an entire cabinet of identical wine glasses. Sam is shaken out of her efficient yet lackluster relationship when she runs into an old flame, (Rossif Sutherland) a breathy John Mayer-type who kumbayas his way back into her heart. Middle child Julie (Elaine Kao) is a surprise dyke who falls for B-movie actress Mia Scarlett (Mia Riverton), who’s rehearsing for a medical role in the hospital where Julie works. Then there’s Katie, (Kathy Shao-Lin Lee) a teenaged prankster who sulkily and wordlessly meanders her way through the rest of her family’s neurotic mores while trying to blow up the boy next door. Their blissfully unaware mother (Freda Foh Shen) is content to passive-aggressively control her daughters’ lives with floral arrangements, dating advice and tips on how to marinade duck.
 
The ethnic clash between tradition and assimilation is illustrated artfully through each of the daughter’s wayward conflicts, with dance as the common connecting thread between them. Katie is immersed in her high school hip hop dance troupe (that is, when she’s not engaged in the ultimate prank war with her neighbor and crush). Julie takes tango lessons and Sam once had hopes of going to Julliard before she buckled to practicality and went into business instead. One particular scene gracefully and humorously demonstrates the generational yin and yang, where the mother catches Katie in the backyard practicing a traditional Chinese dance. In slow-motion, Katie skillfully minces the air around her in customary Chinese robes and Etnies sneakers. Of course, some of the growing pain jokes come off as contrived, (does anybody really light bags of dog poo on fire anymore?) especially when a technologically impaired Ed tries to send an instant message to Katie and is completely stupefied by the whole ordeal.
 
While the sincerity of the film is touching and easy to relate to, (it won Best Narrative Feature Award at Tribeca and Outfest) the progression of the many weaving storylines leaves some of them stilted and undeveloped. Julie, for instance, who’s obviously very excited about…everything, approaches her newfound sexuality with a kind of zeal that puts motivational speakers to shame. Her enthusiasm is sort of frightening at times and her relationship with Mia, while steamy, doesn’t leave much room to maneuver within the larger buffet of family dysfunction. Julie’s enthusiasm does translate into the bedroom, however, so watch out! Or just watch.
 
Even in its less believable moments, Red Doors maintains an affectionate, airy tone that complements the characters’ struggles of identity and their relationships to each other. It’s intimate and effortless charms are what make Red Doors a solid and enjoyable film.