The Misadventures of Mistress Maneater

The Misadventures of Mistress Maneater is a new release indie that I discovered on Prime. The bold plot has elements that feel a bit like a throwback to films I loved -- part comedy, drama, caper, and romance. Our lead has 30 days to pay back her debt and is forced to extort a priest when she discovers his hidden masterpiece. The film may have some understandable indie imperfections, but it's a solid effort and I really liked the performances of the lead actress, Lorissa Julianus I believe. Worth a watch for appreciators of indie film.

I thoroughly enjoyed this indie-romantic-action comedy. Why? It's easier to explain when I discuss reasons I don't enjoy films categorized similarly.

Camp vs Cringe: There is nothing worse than secondhand embarrassment when watching a comedy. I will quickly give up on a film if it becomes cringey rather than funny. Mistress Maneater is definitely over the top and troupe-y at times, but they were self aware enough to stay firmly in the camp category. There was one moment in particular that I howled with laughter due to the subversion of expectations.

The audience is treated as intelligent: I will be the first to say, I hate comedies that are solely low-brow/gross out style. Mistress Maneater has elements of art history, religion, and lesser spoken about world history/events framing the story. And it's delivered in a way that assumes the audience doesn't need their hands held to understand it. It grounded many of the character motivations in a broader reality, which was appreciated.

Foreign language: I happened to watch this with a friend who is a native Russian speaker. He confirmed that while some of the accents were a bit off (and 1 spot on), the dialog was actually Russian instead of "film Russian" - a common complaint for him. Many major studio films do not make the effort, so kudos for making the effort!

Is this the best film of 2020? Of course not - it wasn't trying to be. It's a fun romp! And in 2020, something to just enjoy is very welcome.

I haven't reviewed a film on Imdb in several years, but this one is worth a few words. First of all, I found the writing to be very good, full of wit and timing. That's what impressed me most... that and the acting of the lovely Lorrisa Julianas. I was so pleased when I found out she was the writer as well. Low budget, yes, but the writing is what elevates this film. Please don't be thrown off by the ridiculous low ratings, it's actually pretty good entertainment.

The Misadventures of Mistress Maneater is a solid, well acted film that is very effective. Although I think the movie could have been a bit shorter overall, the characters are unique, and it turned out to have more emotion than I expected which made for a powerful film. The cinematography was excellent along with the writing. Check it out.

Ava Moriarty is a really memorable, bigger-than-life character, convincingly and luminously portrayed by Lorrisa Julianus.

I think Ava should star in her own Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series, with emphasis on her as academic prodigy and art/history expert. Unfortunately they, i.e. the Hallmark brand, would probably shy away from her striking and hilarious dominatrix dimension.

Impressive how the artwork featured in the plot was done by the lead actress herself.

Not really satisfied with both main characters' backstory, "big reveal's." Came off as forced and unbelievable. The overall resolution of the plot was another head-scratcher--WTF! It felt like the writer or production ran out of time/money and just threw away the ending.

I do hope though to see more of and by Lorrisa Julianus. She's a real talent.