The Week That Girl Died

If you can find it, see it, `The Week that Girl Died' is a smart, funny and well executed slice of life comedy. Quite simply, it's a true sleeper hit that won't let you down. One problem, it is hard to find. I caught this movie at a film festival in Chicago a couple of years ago, and then saw it again at a New York screening, as part of a series. This romantic comedy is a story of friendship, love, lust and family, (not specifically in that order). It is charming, funny, and most of all honest and believable. The cast of up and coming actors can already be seen regularly on TV and in theaters; most notably Erik Palladino, Justina Machado, and Patrick Fischler. All other actors do a nice job of portraying these realistic and sometimes quirky characters, there were solid performances all around. My hat goes off to Rocco V. Iacovone and Sean Travis, they make a solid writer/director team who seemed to be going in the same direction, (something rare these days). Also, I have a feeling one day we will know the names of some of the lesser known actors, specifically Robert Longstreet and Shana O'Neil who portrayed their flawed characters to near perfection.

This is a film where the actors are all fine, especially Brigitte Bako and Erik Palladino, in a film where every one of the three couples meet in a situation that feels verrrrry forced to be either cute or to set the story in motion. In other words, it feels like they are contrived movie scenes, not like real life. Even if women who work at peep parlors ever go out with one of their customers, it just doesn't seem realistic at all the way it is written in this film. Also, when one of the characters meets the overweight woman in the film, it feels artificial, the way they look at each other seconds after arguing. Again, the actors are all good, and moments of this film are nice, but overall yet another indie that could have used some rewriting before production got rolling.

I caught this film as part of the AFI Film Festival. I thought it was fresh, funny and thought provoking. A sleeper hit.

In addition, the actors were really likeable, and the story left me thinking.

I just recently saw "The Week That Girl Died" and I was pleasantly surprised. I say surprised because I am not a big fan of romantic comedies, but this story worked, and it wasn't geared towards any certain audiences because any person I think could relate to this. The acting was very believable and the story was different, but I enjoyed it. There was a lot of cuts of flashbacks from the conversations the friends where having about their relationships. I think that was one of the strongest points of the film. The movie ended leaving a lot of things left alone, but it makes you think which way these characters went with their own situations. I would recommend this to any audiences who enjoys comedies and a lot of different stories packed in one film.

Wonderfully written, this tale of 3 best friends in search of love will steal your heart. We can all see a little bit of ourselves in these characters. Full of young "up and coming" talent, this ensemble cast will surprise you. Nicely shot and directed, this feature is an all around winner. Definitely a must see!