Thursday, November 7, 2013

Film reviews: 'Ass Backwards,' 'A Case of You'

‘Ass Backwards’ — 2 stars


Comedy about two clueless best friends (1:30). NR: Language, nudity. Village East.


We’ve often heard that there aren’t enough interesting roles for women in Hollywood, which sometimes serves as motivation for actresses who create their own projects. So it’s curious that June Diane Raphael and Casey Wilson wrote this particular comedy for themselves to star in. Because it’s hard to imagine two less appealing roles.


Lifelong best friends, Kate (Raphael) and Chloe (Wilson), are 30-year-old losers whose stubbornly sunny outlook clashes painfully with reality. Perpetually searching for a break that never arrives, they have high hopes for an upcoming beauty pageant. They pack up and hit the road, encountering a former pageant rival (Alicia Silverstone), an eccentric reality star (Brian Geraghty) and Chloe’s adoring dad (standout Vincent D’Onofrio), all with inevitably disappointing results.


Raphael and Wilson are impressively committed to these misadventures, but it’s a shame the movie is so cruel to the characters. While the filmmakers — including director Chris Nelson — have clearly modeled their project on “Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion,” they’ve overlooked the daffy affection that made that film funny in the first place.


‘A Case of You’ — 3 stars


Romantic comedy about twentysomething Brooklynites (1:31). NR: Language, sexuality, drugs. IFC.


In 2011, Kat Coiro made “Life Happens,” a modest but appealing romantic dramedy about young women trying to find love while finding themselves. That worked because she used the right cast members and encouraged them to explore new angles within familiar characters. Now she’s done the same thing from a male perspective, with nearly identical results.


There is nothing unexpected about this indie romance, in which an insecure writer (Justin Long) falls for a flighty Brooklyn barista (Evan Rachel Wood). But the actors are on their game, with Long digging deeper than he’s usually asked to, and Wood showing more restraint than she often does.


There are several mildly amusing cameos, too, with Sam Rockwell, Vince Vaughn, Brendan Fraser and Sienna Miller popping up to add interest. (Peter Dinklage’s quirky coffee shop manager is the only real misfire.)


Though she hasn’t yet dropped her safety net, Coiro pushed herself further with last year’s promising, slightly edgy drama “And While We Were Here.” It’ll be interesting to see what she can do when she’s really ready to let go.


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