Mutual Appreciation

Andrew Bujalski is quickly becoming one of my very favorite directors. His debut, Funny Ha Ha, was one of my favorite movies of last year and his latest, Mutual Appreciation, seems destined to be one of my favorites from this year.

Bujalski makes intelligent films that mix the freeform talk of Richard Linklater at his best (Before Sunset, Tape, SubUrbi@) with the layered ensemble naturalism of Robert Altman (Nashville, Short Cuts, and most recently A Prairie Home Companion). They’re deceptively simple movies with limited story that focus primarily on the emotionality of contemporary relationships in as much awkward and messy detail as the young writer/director can manage. Characters often lose their train of thought or experience a moment of confusion over what to say next. They backtrack and correct themselves apologetically. An awkward pause or two seems essential to every scene in addition to an “I mean…” or an “It’s like…” It’s a beautifully fabricated sloppiness in which characters actually do feel as though they are real people.

The main story here involves a complicated situation between three friends: Alan, (Justin Rice) Ellie, (Rachel Clift) and Lawrence (Bujalski). As Alan struggles to get his music career on track, (Justin Rice’s real life brilliant band Bishop Allen provides his music) Ellie and Lawrence are slowly entering into a relationship rut. All of this becomes even more problematic when Alan and Ellie confess to a longstanding “appreciation” of one another that threatens to completely destroy the friendship between all three. Subtlety is the film’s ultimate brilliance. Bujalski gives such emotionally limited material to the actors that practically every development in these characters’ lives comes from minor nuance. The characters hardly ever say what they truly mean, but everything they mean to say comes across in the superb performances and through Bujalski’s wonderful choices as a minimalist director. This is a very unique and astoundingly effective film.

Grade: A+