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Mistress America

kdk August 28, 2015
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Earlier this year, when director Noah Baumbach took aim at self-absorbed hipsters in the chatty but clever .nightsandweekends.com/articles/15/NW1500056.php>While We’re Young, it seemed as though he’d finally gotten it right. But, for the follow-up, Mistress America, he’s back to his old ways, filling the film with clueless narcissists who think they’re far more exceptional than they really are.



Mistress America starts out as the story of Tracy (Lola Kirke), a college freshman whose romantic notions of college life in New York City quickly turn into a lonely and disappointing reality. Desperate to make some kind of connection, she reaches out to her stepsister-to-be, Brooke (Greta Gerwig), and immediately finds herself drawn into a fast-paced world of parties and friends and fabulous plans for the future. Captivated by Brooke’s confidence and ambition, Tracy uses her as inspiration for her writing as she gets caught up in Brooke’s quest to open a new restaurant.



In the beginning, Mistress America is a thoughtful and amusing look at the reality of college life: the pretentious classmates, the awkward social situations, and the clumsy relationships. It’s simple but honest and observant, highlighting many of those ridiculous things that college students tend to take way too seriously.



As soon as Brooke makes her entrance, though, she hijacks the entire film, turning a laid-back comedy about a lonely college freshman into a spastic adventure through the swinging moods and outrageous schemes of the kind of egotistical character who doesn’t care about—or even notice—the damage she does on the way to her next big thing. She is, after all, too busy creating her brand on Twitter. And, in the process, she pulls Tracy into her world, turning her into a blunt, outspoken, self-obsessed little disciple.



To be fair, Brooke is an interesting character. We all know someone like her—someone who’s larger than life, whose personality is so magnetic that she tends to pull weaker people into orbit around her. For the first few minutes, she’s quite fascinating, but it doesn’t take long to figure out that she’s all just smoke and mirrors—all big ideas and random, snappy witticisms that are never any longer (or deeper) than a Tweet. And, like the other shallow, superficial, and generally unhappy people who surround her, she makes this film exhausting to watch.



The characters in Mistress America may be realistic and generally well-acted, but that doesn’t make them worth watching. Though the film has a few interesting insights, it’s a frantic and frustrating experience.





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About Post Author

kdk

Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it. Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course. As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com). Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
kdk@nightsandweekends.com
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kdk

Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.

Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.

As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).

Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.

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