The Young Girl and the Monsoon

"The Young Girl and the Monsoon" tells of a divorced NYC man (Kinney) in a sort of middle-age crisis mode trying to manage the women in his life (lover, daughter, associate/friend) and eventually having to come to grips with them all. An all talk and no action light drama with a sense of humor, this little ensemble indie delivers a thin story about issues with solid performances by all though Muth upstages her co-stars with a sterling performance as a typically brittle teen. Perhaps the best part of the film is just watching some oft unseen actors ply their craft in fine style...too often a rarity, especially in indies. Recommended for mature adults who can identify with the issues.

"The Young Girl and the Monsoon" is a sort of middle-age coming-of-age story, about Hank, an award-winning photojournalist (Terry Kinney, "The House of Mirth"), and his efforts to forge a connection with the women in his life. Hank has never been a great communicator -- at least not in words. He has always put his career ahead of his family, and his relationship with his 13-year-old daughter, Constance (Ellen Muth, "Dolores Claiborne"), is based mostly on worn-out parables from his youth. When his ex-wife remarries, Constance moves in with Hank for three months, and he soon discovers that he barely knows the angry, temperamental girl who has taken over his life. She's never even met his girlfriend of more than a year, Erin (Mili Avital, "Polish Wedding"), and now it appears to be too late; Erin has left him and taken up with a rival photographer. As he approaches, Hank realizes that, if he's going to be happy, he has to reassess his priorities and learn how to reconnect to the women he loves.

Also starring Diane Venora ("Hamlet," "The Insider"), "The Young Girl and the Monsoon" is a promising first film from longtime playwright Ryan. He paints an insightful, touching and often funny portrait of both adolescence and early middle age, with complex, compelling characters that always ring true.

The only good thing about the film was Ellen Muth. She gave a great performance and is such a pleasure to watch. This was one of her first films and you can tell how much of natural she is in front of the camera. She was the reason I watched the film in the first place.

I saw this film over the weekend and it was dreadful. I found most of the scenes to be rather...how can I put it...pointless? The story was weak to begin with and they tried to move the story along by inserting these random scenes that didn't seem to go anywhere. I haven't felt this cheated on since high school. And I'm referring to my girlfriend cheating on me junior year with her ex-boyfriend. Her excuse was, "It's not cheating if it's with an ex." That makes a lot of sense. Dumb broad. I heard she got fat now anyhow. Karma baby!

Anyways........the actor who played the father of this film gave a poor performance. I felt like he was overacting. I'm surprised because I've seen this actor in OZ and he was quite good. So maybe it was bad directing. Who knows.

I wouldn't recommend this film unless you are in a fraternity and need a film to play on a continuous loop for the pledges during hell week.

This movie is played all the time on showtime, if you ever want to see it. Plus it is coming out on DVD (15,000) copies sometime soon. It is a beautiful story about complicated relationships both parental and romantic. Personally, I think Mili Avital did a beautiful job, as she always does, and I wish that i could see her more often in movies. She was once named most promising actress... but i haven't seen her in much. Well good luck Mili and see this movie, a solid independent film and moving story.