In Search of a Midnight Kiss
Rather than spend New Year's Eve alone, two love-scarred LA 20-somethings hook up on Craigslist (match-making classifieds) in this independent, lo-fi romantic comedy.
We head into the rendezvous well acquainted with his circumstances: the home-town girlfriend he hasn't got over, the demoralising impact of rooming with a romantic couple. We get to know her situation - not so great either - as their date progresses. There are moments of gross embarrassment, but it all stacks up very nicely into one of the more credible romantic encounters you're likely to see in a movie. Sinatra, sweet contemporary LA pop and glowing black and white photography do for downtown LA what countless movies have done for Paris and New York. [Source: New Zealand Film Festival '08]
- Director:
- Alex Holdridge ('Sexless')
- Cast:
- Scoot McNairySara SimmondsBrian Matthew McGuireKaty LuongBret RobertsTwink Caplan
Reviews & comments
Flicks, Andreas Heinemann
flicksThis right here is pretty much the definition of independent American filmmaking. You’ve got the low budget ($US13,000), small cast, concerns with the day-to-day lives of modern youngsters. And it's shot in black and white. But while a lot of efforts like this end up looking like masturbatory film-school projects, this is a credit to the style.
A boring miss!
The film starts with a bunch of couples kissing, and then directly leads to a supposed shocking scene of the sagging behind of a male pleasuring himself to a photo of his flat mate's girlfriend. The rest of the film is about a boring and it misses every chance to ever get any more interesting or deep. The script is said to be true to life, but I for one...
See it!
Who the hell are these people below? Got an axe to grind if you ask me. All this talk of greasiness, chain smoking, - god who cares? (And writing in caps is obnoxious). This is a really good film. Even if you don't appreciate the achievement in terms of low-budget film making - it's such a fresh, and real-feeling movie. What a change! It feels like real...
Variety
pressPerformances are aptly quirky and ingratiating, Holdridge's seriocomic balance nicely judged. But the most outstanding element in an accomplished low-budget package is Robert Murphy's lensing, which recalls "Manhattan" in its B&W celebration of a cityscape.
Total Film
pressSalty enough for him, sweet enough for her, Alex Holdridge’s swooning slacker-com is the ideal date-flick for arthouse amore.
The New York Times
pressIn Search of a Midnight Kiss has its derivative moments along with awkward patches -- the inelegantly shaped climax tries to force uninteresting parallels between the two central couples -- it manages the difficult task of creating a sustained, plausible and inviting world.
Roger Ebert
pressWe increasingly admire the quality of the acting: Both actors take their characters through a difficult series of changes, without ever seeming to try, or be aware of it.
New Zealand Herald
pressA simple, charming and occasionally bitingly funny modern day romance.
Los Angeles Times
pressIf it were a parody of relationship-youth pictures, In Search of a Midnight Kiss would maybe be tolerable, but writer-director Alex Holdridge seems to be playing it with a straight face.
Hollywood Reporter
pressAn amusing ensemble piece about the troubles of dislocated twentysomethings attempting to find their way through life and love.
Empire Magazine
pressLovingly photographed in a monochrome that recalls Woody Allen’s Manhattan, this is a slickly scripted rom-com.
Flicks, Andreas Heinemann
flicksThis right here is pretty much the definition of independent American filmmaking. You’ve got the low budget ($US13,000), small cast, concerns with the day-to-day lives of modern youngsters. And it's shot in black and white. But while a lot of efforts like this end up looking like masturbatory film-school projects, this is a credit to the style.
Variety
pressPerformances are aptly quirky and ingratiating, Holdridge's seriocomic balance nicely judged. But the most outstanding element in an accomplished low-budget package is Robert Murphy's lensing, which recalls "Manhattan" in its B&W celebration of a cityscape.
Total Film
pressSalty enough for him, sweet enough for her, Alex Holdridge’s swooning slacker-com is the ideal date-flick for arthouse amore.
The New York Times
pressIn Search of a Midnight Kiss has its derivative moments along with awkward patches -- the inelegantly shaped climax tries to force uninteresting parallels between the two central couples -- it manages the difficult task of creating a sustained, plausible and inviting world.
Roger Ebert
pressWe increasingly admire the quality of the acting: Both actors take their characters through a difficult series of changes, without ever seeming to try, or be aware of it.
New Zealand Herald
pressA simple, charming and occasionally bitingly funny modern day romance.
Los Angeles Times
pressIf it were a parody of relationship-youth pictures, In Search of a Midnight Kiss would maybe be tolerable, but writer-director Alex Holdridge seems to be playing it with a straight face.
Hollywood Reporter
pressAn amusing ensemble piece about the troubles of dislocated twentysomethings attempting to find their way through life and love.
Empire Magazine
pressLovingly photographed in a monochrome that recalls Woody Allen’s Manhattan, this is a slickly scripted rom-com.
A boring miss!
The film starts with a bunch of couples kissing, and then directly leads to a supposed shocking scene of the sagging behind of a male pleasuring himself to a photo of his flat mate's girlfriend. The rest of the film is about a boring and it misses every chance to ever get any more interesting or deep. The script is said to be true to life, but I for one...
See it!
Who the hell are these people below? Got an axe to grind if you ask me. All this talk of greasiness, chain smoking, - god who cares? (And writing in caps is obnoxious). This is a really good film. Even if you don't appreciate the achievement in terms of low-budget film making - it's such a fresh, and real-feeling movie. What a change! It feels like real...
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