In a World...

Lake Bell is appealing in the lead role as Carol, an aspiring voice-over artist, and as writer/director she's come up with a unique variation on a familiar indie formula: 30-something slacker gets kicked out of the nest. There's a lot going on-Michaela Watkins and Rob Corddry as Carol's sister and brother-in-law get a whole little romcom to themselves-but Carol's various struggles, professional, romantic and familial, mesh together very well. The cast is impressive: nice to imagine that somebody would cast Eva Longoria as a Cockney gangster's moll (though not in this movie, I'm glad to say), and Geena Davis turns up briefly as a studio exec who delivers a crucial message, maybe THE crucial message. Fuzzy, flabby Fred Melamed ("A Serious Man") is definitely the go-to guy when you need an overbearing a**hole, though Ken Marino seemed a little too cartoony as Carol's voice-over rival-more like an escapee from a Christopher Guest movie. Wouldn't have minded seeing more more about the worrrrld of Hollywood voice artists and dialect coaches; it's refreshing to watch a film where the characters do something real and don't just have vague glamour jobs as lawyers or architects (mainstream) or toil away as peons on a cube farm (indie). Available on streaming Netflix.

You have to see In a World — if for no other reason, it's the perfect story to explain to someone the glass ceiling faced by most women. In a World is genius. It's brilliant, amazingly well written, and filled with all kinds of nuances that speak to our lives and what is right and wrong with them. Family issues. Sibling connections. Loving someone out of your league. Commitment and its challenges. Self confidence. Need I go on? Rarely will you go to a movie that offers so many mirrors of yourself to look into. Thank you, Lake Bell.

So, who is Lake Bell and where did she come from? This movie is in the Juno category, and even if it's a one-shot wonder, I want to know this person who is behind it.

It took me a good ten minutes to figure out where I'd seen Lake Bell before. Then it hit me. She's the dragon tattoo lady married to Meryl's ex in It's Complicated. I was stunned. It's so rare to see someone on the screen who can be more than one persona. When I realized she'd written it, directed it, and starred in it, I was blown away. Blown away, I tell you. I have very little desire to meet Hollywood players, but I would have lunch with Lake. Dinner. Breakfast. Tell me where and when, and I'll be there. I want to pick her brain. What made her think of it? What was her father like? Has she done voice-overs? Oh my, maybe we should spend a weekend at Canyon Ranch? One meal isn't enough time.

The cast is obscure and perfect. The sisters look like sisters. Rob Corddry, who plays Lake's sister's husband, will tear your heart out. He makes the case over and over again for marrying the nice guy, not the guy who sends your heart into cardiac arrest. Ken Marino, who plays Gustav and has the difficult task of walking close to the line of ridiculous, nails it. There is one weak link, however. Fred Melamed, who plays Lake's father, is off. I'm not sure exactly why, or whether he was playing it the way she directed, but he's not quite believable.

Here is what I love, love, love about In a World: It proves, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you can make great movies without a star attraction. It proves that there can be many Hollywood writers. It proves that we can rework this industry, and women can have a voice and a place in film. It shows the sheer depth of resources that exist for making films that are unique, compelling, and funny.

In a World . . . was written, produced, and directed by Lake Bell. Can you guess who stars in the movie?

This modest comedy takes place in the mini-world of people who do voice overs. Apparently this world exists. And, like all such worlds, it has stars, former stars, people who want to be stars and will make it, and people who want to be stars and won't make it.

This world also has alliances, feuds, betrayals, burning hates and burning loves. It's the same as any other profession, except that it's invisible to the rest of us. (When was the last time you knew the name of someone doing a voice-over?)

Bell is a good director and a good actor. (And, yes, her voice is fabulous.) She keeps her excellent ensemble cast moving along. The story line starts with boy meets girl, so you know how it will end, but there are enough unexpected twists and turns to hold your interest. It will work well on the small screen. My advice--seek it out and see it. Just don't expect a movie that's so powerful that it will change your life forever.

Lake Bell wrote, directed and starred in this comedy of a voice coach who wants to make it as a voice-over star, a boy's club dominated by her famous father, the reigning king of movie trailer voice-overs. The small group are competing for the voice-over role for an epic new blockbuster series that's bringing back Don LaFontaine's famous "In a World..." putting the father and daughter at conflict.

Currently making its rounds of the festivals, where it picked up the Waldo Salt Screen writing award at Sundance USA and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. It's a great script that zips along, full of believable characters, handles the central conflict deftly and is never annoyingly quirky, just consistently funny.

Featuring an uncredited cameo by Cameron Diaz and a whole host of comedic talent from the LA circuit including Demetri Martin, Ken Marino, Rob Corddry, Geena Davis, Nick Offerman and Eva Longoria. Lake Bell confirmed at the Sundance London director's Q&A she'd written the script with all her friends in mind but she is the stand-out, anchoring the film and flawlessly delivering around different accents in her performance.

A feminist film that delivers its message without forcing itself upon you and puts the comedy foremost, it's great fun, well worth tracking down at release and shows Lake Bell to be a great talent to watch.

I didn't know anything about the movie other than the synopsis, and so I thought it was a documentary. Nope!

That said, this was one of the most laid-back movies I've seen (and liked) in a while. It feels so much like a typical "independent" movie from the late 90's/early 2000's, that it was very refreshing. The dialogue felt very authentic (a few scenes felt improvised, even), and the main character is awesome. I hope this movie becomes more popular just to showcase this character to a wider audience. She's the female lead character we're not shown too often in Hollywood- she's just kinda...normal.

Demitri Martin is also awesome, and I wish he had more screen time (though his character was wisely kept in small doses). The supporting roles, as well as the B-plot characters, are mostly great, though there are a couple of two-dimensional characters who feel written in for convenience, or cheap gags.

The movie is not without flaws, either. At times the characters' dialogue overlaps each other and comes out a bit too quick. Especially in the beginning, I had trouble figuring out what was going on because I couldn't pick out what the people were saying. But then again, that did add to the authenticity of the film overall.

Also, one person's "authentic" is another person's "boring" or "unmotivated." Like real life, stuff just kinda happens and people just kinda do things. It felt very much like just suddenly watching somebody's weekend. I can see how that might irritate some people, who'd want a more audience-friendly flow and script.

I only mention it because it threw me off at first- since I expected a documentary, I had no idea what the movie was trying to be for the first 10 minutes or so. But it did all come together in the end, and I liked it.