Harmony and Me

Takes the "Better Off Dead" breakup aspect and puts a magnifying glass on it, well done. Kristen Tucker shines in every scene she's in.

Rarely have I had the pleasure of laughing as much as I did while watching this movie.

"Harmony and Me" may be the funniest film I've ever seen--it captures perfectly that all-too-human self-pitying pitiful state of rejection, lost relationship, heartbreak that we've all descended into at some point in our lives.

The movie offers that rare opportunity to laugh at our own despair. Watching Harmony chew on his misery mirrors the mental replay that you can't seem to escape when a relationship goes wrong. It's a timeless tale. Yet Byington uniquely spotlights the emotional obstacle course of relating. The tone is quirky, and the story rings all the more true for it. The characters feel very real.

Perfect comedic timing. Hilarious script. Excellent acting. Brilliant.

Halfway through the film "Harmony and Me," the central character's ex-girlfriend sizes him up and declares, "You know how sometimes you're watching a movie, and halfway through, you realize that you don't care about these characters? That's what's wrong with you." The line simultaneously demolishes our suspension of disbelief and reminds us what's wrong with "Harmony and Me." Ultimately, it's a chore to care much about Harmony, a sad-sack amateur songwriter with a boring day job and a bevy of quirky co-workers, quirky friends, quirky family members and quirky neighbors, all of whom are immensely more watchable and fun to listen to than he is. Shot in three weeks, "Harmony and Me" is an indie comedy with a budget so low that the cameraman couldn't afford Windex to wipe off the perpetually dirty lens. The film is relentlessly quirky, with some inspiringly improvisational-type humor, and only loses its footing when it settles for being quirky for quirk's sake. As Harmony, glum Justin Rice whines to anybody who will listen that his ex won't stop breaking his heart, and you can't help wondering how Jessica (fresh-faced Kristen Tucker) put up with this whiner for ten minutes, let alone a full year, before dumping this loser. (Tucker's shtick about mourning the relationship several weeks before actually breaking up with him is the funniest thing in the film -- somebody needs to give this gifted actress her own comedy.) Viewers with a high tolerance for quirk are encouraged to give the movie a chance for the occasional moments of brilliance and for the excellent supporting players -- including a genius turn by director Bob Byington and "Modern Family" actress Suzy Nakamura, who has been cast as so many doctors that she deserves a medical diploma.

Funny, funny, funny . . .

Low-fi movie, that has a "homemade" feel to it . . . but it's FUNNY. And it's edited very well as far as pacing goes.

Want more from this filmmaker.

Why do I have to write ten lines to make a review.

That's really annoying.

I said what I wanted to say.

Good film. Worth watching. Oh my God! I have to write even more to submit this review! That's 3 times now. Maybe now this will be enough text or lines to submit my review.

One more line for good measure. Ugh.

HARMONY AND ME plays like a scrapbook of found scenes; all somewhat centering around our main character trying to get over a breakup. Everything in the film is hilarious, because it's totally true. My friends and I got some pie after the screening, we were talking about how almost worse than going through an actual breakup is when all your friends tell you how you're supposed to get over the breakup. As we were eating, we kept recalling our favorite parts and lines - it's intensely quotable ("She's breaking my heart, she's like a bear with my heart in it's claws") but also so fast paced - most scenes are not even a minute long.

I saw it with quite possibly the best audience - we were all totally laughing the entire time. Come to think of it, many films like this; there's always a part near the end where it gets sentimental or real - this film goes SO FAR the other way. It's one of the funniest and most ridiculous endings I've seen in a feature film. They really went for it - and the crowd I saw it with at least, we were totally into it. And the film is never slow - I doubt it was longer than 90 minutes.

But it's funny; while the film is linear - it really does have this scrapbook feeling to it. In a weird way, the film has the feeling of "Harold and Maude" and "Nashville" but seen thru the lens of more modern indies like "Mutual Appreciation" (but this is just way funnier than that one).

I'm always looking thru my netflix cue to find new indie comedies to rent - I really wish there were more films like this one. Totally up my alley. Totally recommend it.