Sandwhiched somewhere between "Notting Hill" and "Pretty Woman" is "Love and Other Disasters," a romantic comedy with a level of awareness we haven´t seen on screen since the "Scream" films. Brit Emily Jackson (an Audrey Hepburn-esque Brittany Murphy) works at U. K. Vogue, lives with her best gay friend Peter (Matthew Rhys from "Brothers and Sisters") and maintains an on-again, off-again romance with James Wildstone (Elliot Cowan).
She is so intent on fixing Peter up with photographer's assistant Paolo (Santiago Cabrera) that she completely misses the forest for the trees. It turns out, and this is no spoiler, Paolo isn´t gay and actually thinks he´s in love with Jacks. But the Jacks/Paolo romance is only one of the stories revolving around the "l" word. All intersect and intertwine until, fortuitously, they meld together in the finale.
"Love and Other Disasters" is a new kind of rom com. It acknowledges the world it inhabits and never shies away from poking fun at itself. From numerous mentions of "Breakfast at Tiffany´s" to an opening and closing containing stage directions from a script, writer/director Alek Keshishian imbues each character with a wit we don´t see very often. Part of their charm, undoubtedly, is taken from the real life inspirations for each on screen personae. Keshishian admits, in the making of featurette, to using people from his own life to populate the movie. This artistic choice clearly helps him keep a tight leash on personality quirks and each individual storyline when they could have very easily gone off the rails into schtick-or worse.
Perhaps it´s a comment on the nature of movies or the hyper-awareness the characters possess, but Peter mocks Tallulah (Catherine Tate) watching "Notting Hill." He doesn´t care that she´s never see it before; no, she has no idea how these types of movies conclude. It´s mentioned several times in the form of "If this were a movie…" statements. They´re not done with a slick wink and nod to the audience; rather, it is organic conversation to these people, especially aspiring screenwriter Peter, based on their life experiences.
There is a tendency to play humor for the laughs instead of allowing it to be germane to the story. Does anyone actually believe our most slapstick characters exist in the real world? Think about it. Happy Gilmore and Billy Madison, the flamboyant Jack McFarlane…they are caricatures, working on stereotypes and on non-realistic levels. Here, the plot originates from the personalities on display, whether it be the low key Jacks to depressed life of the party Tallulah. These actors aren´t trying to be funny or endear themselves to us; they simply do it. This is why the movie works as well as it does: we sympathize with these people, not just the characters, prompting us to want each to succeed in their own way.
Jacks is the unquestionable center of the film, never too high and never too low. Her hands are evident on all the others, from setting up Peter and Paolo to steering ex James to Tallulah. Modeled, at least in part, after Hepburn, Murphy is a revelation, decadent, high class, charming, beautiful, smart, confident and yet vulnerable. All those adjectives could also be used to describe Holly Golightly in "Tiffany´s," a comparison everyone is striving for, I´m sure.
While the rest of the cast is rock solid, I must point to Catherine Tate for a moment. She chews up every single scene she appears in and, while she isn´t a dominant force in the production, Talullah is a welcome presence on screen due to her boorishness, her bluster. Tate plays the outspoken friend with relish, ably trading verbal jabs with her mother (Stephanie Beacham, an actress we don´t see nearly enough in America).
As I alluded to a bit earlier, we know how romantic comedies end. There is no deviation from the formula because, frankly, the idea of this genre is to have the characters happy by the time the credits roll. So it´s not so much the destination for them, but the journey. How they get to their final destinations, the trials they go through, whereas in life, there are no guaranteed happy endings. What incident will precipitate Paolo coming out as straight to Jacks? Will Peter stop obsessing over a "perfect" man in favor of someone who pops up throughout the story? Can Talullah set aside her snark long enough to allow someone with the same background into her life? The answer should be obvious.
There is a singular problem in the film: the running time. Clocking in at only 90 minutes, "Love and Other Disasters" concentrates on the "big three" (Jacks, Peter and Paolo) to the detriment of Talullah and James. If we´re to be emotionally invested and therefore "happy" in the finale for each character, we need to see some sort of "in between" bridge scenes to create a relationship. A simple subtitle saying "one year later" isn´t going to cut it. Not for a film as witty, sly and well done as this one turns out to be.
But then, maybe the short running time is by design. "Love and Other Disasters" never overstays its welcome and, what´s more, leaves us wanting more from this group. From wild flights of fancy (cameo´s from Orlando Bloom and Gwyneth Paltrow near the end) to a gorgeous London, whimsy and top tier performances, this is a movie ripe for a sequel, though I hope it never happens. It would dilute the charm of this installment.
VIDEO
Presented in its original 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen format, I can´t complain about the look of the film. While the picture does appear washed out and, thus, looks like a British production, there aren´t any technical issues with the product. Blacks are generally spot on and the vast array of colors used in the Vogue world are reproduced flawlessly. A very minor amount of grain is evident in Jacks´ apartment with its white walls, though it is never distracting.
AUDIO:
I would have been more than content with a straight 2.0 stereo mix, but Image has provided a 5.1 variant along with the 2.0 version. They both do their jobs well, bringing dialogue to the forefront while keeping background noises where they should be-the background. There really isn´t a reason to go for the 5.1 over the 2.0, even with a full stereo set up. Directional effects don´t help or hinder the production and, as usual, 5.1 sounds a little less forceful. English and Spanish subtitles are included.
EXTRAS:
A making of featurette (26:04) is surprisingly devoid of the warmth found in the film. If anything, the interviews with the cast and director come off as EPK material. They´re not on screen to tell us anything about the movie-no behind the scenes stories, no flubs, nothing. The cast loved each other, brilliant script, you know the drill.
A couple trailers lead off the disc: "Organizm" (1:56); "Taxi to the Dark Side" (2:28); "Careless" (2:09); and "Banshee" (1:49). This film´s trailer is also included (1:48).
PARTING THOUGHTS:
I was enchanted with "Love and Other Disasters" thanks to a smart script and terrific performances up and down the cast. It´s a small, unknown gem, which is a tragedy. With a little luck, this DVD release will find its way into more homes, giving Murphy, Rhys and Tate a wider audience. And maybe even influence the creation of more films in its mold. We could do far worse.