Some of the major highlights from Sundance continue to trickle out, and arriving next month is Person to Person, one of the festival's more unusual comedies. The cast is what will draw people to it, just as it did me: Michael Cera, Abbi Jacobson, Tavi Gevinson, Bene Coopersmith, Isiah Whitlock, Michaela Watkins, Olivia Lucciardi, Ben Rosenfield, Buddy Durress, George Sample III and Philip Baker Hall all take part in the multi-faceted ensemble, which tells strange stories of New Yorkers' everyday lives.
The problem is that writer/director Dustin Guy Defa's unusual sitcom-style vignettes struggle to connect, ironic for a movie about people trying to connect with one another. Cera plays a crime reporter trying to train and get a date with a newbie journalist played by Jacobson, while other stories follow an aging watchmaker, a rebellious teen, and so forth. There are a couple of breakouts on the acting side, however, with props going to Coopersmith's authentic performance as a jazz lover unsure about his current relationship. Gevinson also impresses as a socially awkward teen, and will remind some of a cross between Michelle Williams and Scarlett Johansson, such is her commanding screen presence. It's too bad her story is one of the weakest.
Person to Person opens July 28th, and you can check out my full review here.
