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Puccini For Beginners

While the gay romantic comedy is still failing to break into the indie 'mainstream', the lesbian equivalent is rising in popularity. After the breakout success of Kissing Jessica Stein came the Richard Curtis-esque lightness of the charming Imagine Me & You. 2007 kicks off with the low-budget independent offering, Puccini For Beginners.

Like 99% of romantic comedies, it's set in New York. But rather genuinely so, with real locations and an atmospheric sense of what the city is really like. It's much more Sex and the City than Friends.

It follows the romantic trials and tribulations of Allegra (Elizabeth Reaser) who starts off the movie in a relationship with the borderline lesbian Samantha (Julianne Nicholson). Problem is that Allegra just won't commit. So Samantha leaves her and Allegra is devastated. But when she meets Columbia professor Philip (Justin Kirk) a drunken night ends up evolving into a surprising relationship.

After she begins a heterosexual connection with Phillip, Allegra strikes up an affair with Grace (Gretchen Mol), almost in an attempt to reassert her homosexuality. She juggles the two relationships with increasing trouble all the time unaware of one key fact. Grace and Phillip are in a relationship all by themselves.

It all gets increasingly farcical as you might imagine and it is an interesting love triangle that is explored. Although it does rely on the belief that every gay person has the potential to switch teams at the drop of a bat. It's especially improbable given the fact that the character of Philip isn't someone who is infinitely attractive or charming or funny.

What the film excels in is its location and also its funny and frank perception of relationships. The character of Allegra is a refreshing one. She's a woman but she acts like the man in relationships. She's a lesbian but she doesn't conform to any of the stereotypes that Hollywood usually thrusts onto lesbian characters in movies. It helps that she's played by Elizabeth Reaser, who has helped to make lasting impressions in small roles in both Stay and The Family Stone. Finally here she's given the chance to take on a leading role and gives off a charisma that makes us hope she'll be used more in the future.

For a small film, there's a wealth of recognizable faces. Apart from Reaser, there's Justin Kirk best known for his performances in TV shows Weeds, Jack & Jill and Angels In America, Gretchen Mol who's status as 'hot young thing' lasted for about a week back in 1998 but had a career resurgence with The Notorious Bettie Page and the hugely underrated Julianne Nicholson from Kinsey and Little Black Book.

The talented cast help to offset some of the film's negative qualities. The most pronounced of which appears to be the alarming amount of plot contrivances which

pervade throughout. A character will just happen to be in the right place or meet the right person at just the right time – it happens a depressing amount and by the end it really starts to grate.

The finale is also frustratingly lazy and fails to add anything new to the tried and tested formula. Overall it's an interesting addition to the 'lesbian romantic comedy' subgenre that is refreshingly short on stereotypes and does contain some interesting comic situations. It also has a winning performance from Elizabeth Reaser who like the rest of the cast deserve more work based off of this.

Movie Grade: C+

Synopsis:

New York writer and opera addict Allegra (Elizabeth Reaser, “The Family Stone”) loves her girlfriend Samantha (Julianne Nicholson, “Kinsey”), but can’t commit. When Samantha leaves her, Allegra rebounds with handsome philosophy professor Phillip (Justin Kirk, “Angels in America”) as well as the irresistibly beautiful, recently single Grace (Gretchen Mol, “The Notorious Bettie Page”). Allegra juggles secret relationships with both of them, never suspecting that Philip and Grace have a connection of their own. With a sophisticated blend of humor and irony, this screwball sex comedy twists and turns with all the drama of classic Puccini.