Weather Girl

I just saw this movie at a screening in Sonoma and was wonderfully surprised. I might be a bit biased because I am a fan of romantic comedies and movies in general, but this was a good movie. At times, the movie itself seems to be poking fun at romantic comedies with how it handles some situations and some of the lines.

The tag/plot from the main IMDb page gives a great overview of the plot: A Seattle weather girl freaks out on-air over her cheating boyfriend, the morning show anchor, and moves in with her little brother. This does not give the movie away. The depth of the story is not usually found in romantic comedies. There is more to this movie than girl meets boy. All of the casting is wonderful. The only issue I had was with Byron and Walt, for some reason I thought the actors should have been switched. By the end of the movie I disregarded this because both of them develop into their roles.

This is one of those movies that is great if you are a movie lover (and some TV) because there are so many great actors in it. Almost every scene there is another actor/actress where you think to yourself 'where have I seen them before?' or 'oh, I love them'. I do have to agree with another reviewer on here that the movie is a little dark, not film noir dark but actually screen dark. I am guessing that is the theater I saw it in (a classic old one that is not set up for digital projection). I gave it a 9/10 because I have only seen it once. I reserve 10/10 for after the second viewing, if I still feel the same way about it it gets another star.

OK, romantic comedies usually turn me off, but I really liked this movie.

It's loaded with guest appearances that come fast and furious; like Jane Lynch as a hysterically contemptuous restaurant manager; Jon Cryer as as creepy accountant set-up date; Blair Underwood as the frantic Producer; Alex Kapp Hunter and Marin Hinkle as devoted but misguided friends, but the real magic to this indie film is the performances of the title character, "sassy weather girl" Sylvia (the stunning Tricia O'Kelley), her perpetually dismayed but faithful brother Walt (Ryan Devlin), and his semi-slacker house mate Byron (Patrick J. Davis).

Writer/director Blayne Weaver (how could Jon "Duckie" Cryer keep a straight face throughout his scenes?) actually makes a romantic comedy believable and thoroughly watchable, which is quite a feat.

I loved the set design, in particular Walt's apartment, which resembles a theme park for yet-to-be-developed young adults (I can relate)...but someone was totally on by including a Seaweed poster, a totally cool Seattle band, who I'm sure were delighted to be in the prop! Tricia O'Kelley was totally lovable and played her character well. Her character straddled two worlds that were quite separate and totally different, and her involvement with her brother Walt and his buddy Byron were very believable and not too over-the-top.

My favorite scene is the one in which Sylvia comes home to her brother's apartment after a particularly distressing day, and upon seeing Walt and Byron involved in a video game, simply takes her waitresses' uniform off and waltzes over to Byron's apartment across the hall in her underwear and boots. Byron, being a 29-year-old guy, immediately follows.

I saw this movie on video without knowing anything about it and I was pleasantly surprised. Loved the actors, loved the story, loved the humor. Terrific to see a woman grappling with real life issues and even better to see a romance between an older woman and younger man without all that "cougar" baggage. Is it formulaic, of course, but it has an independent feel which makes it seem a lot fresher than bigger movies with bigger stars. The sibling relationship was an especially nice addition. I'm a huge fan of the romantic comedy genre, but so much of it is recycled and cringe-worthy. Most Hollywood rom-coms are a few good scenes amid barely watchable dreck (The Wedding Date, The Wedding Planner, 27 Dresses, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, the list goes on). This was totally watchable and I would strongly recommend it to anyone who likes a happy ending.

Sassy Seattle local TV weather girl Sylvia (Tricia O'Kelley) goes crazy on the air over womanizing anchorman Dale (Mark Harmon) cheating on her with co-anchor Sherry (Kaitlin Olson). She has to restart her life while staying with brother Walt (Ryan Devlin) and his intrusive flirty neighbor friend Byron (Patrick J. Adams).

This is basically a single gal TV sitcom in movie form. For certain circles and maybe for most people, this is damning rebuke. I don't mind a single gal TV sitcom. It's a staple for a reason. The main thing for me is that I like Tricia O'Kelley. She has mostly been the sidekick or the mean girl. She deserves to play the lead and Patrick J. Adams is also very charming. It's a comfortable TV show in movie form.

I attended a screening of Blayne Weaver's "Weather Girl" at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival. It had premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in January and was one of those "buzz films" here.

Tricia O'Kelley stars a Seattle morning show's "sassy weather girl" who has an over-the-top, painfully funny on-air meltdown over her cheating boyfriend, the show's despicable co-anchor (the always-reliable Mark Harmon, "NCIS'" Agent Gibbs). Out of work, out of love, and homeless, she needs to pick up the pieces and start a new life. That begins with a knock on the door of her brother Walt's bachelor apartment (Ryan Devlin), where his best friend Byron (Patrick J. Adams) seems to have taken up permanent residence. Jon Cryer, Jane Lynch, and Blair Underwood are among other notables in the cast.

Although it's an indie, "Weather Girl" has the polished look of a Hollywood movie with top quality production values and cinematography that takes full advantage of its breathtaking Seattle location. But this is clearly a character-driven film where all the protagonists have their flaws and the villains simply cannot redeem themselves. There is a great deal of visual humor -- sight gags abound and facial expressions often are the jokes in themselves. The plot is somewhat formulaic, though, and we know where this is going right from the start. But even though we've seen this story before it is still entertaining and occasionally laugh out loud funny.

Writer/director Blayne Weaver, cast, and crew were present for a hilarious Q&A after the screening which rivaled the comedy in the movie.

Just a note: the picture was annoyingly dark. Generally I'd attribute this to poor projection on the part of the theater or a bad print (or digital copy) before I'd blame the post-production team. It definitely took away from my enjoyment of the film and I hope that's not the way the public will see it in the future.