Debuting at this year's Sundance under the title of L.A. Times, Michelle Morgan's It Happened in L.A. was one of a few indie rom-coms by female filmmakers (Band Aid being my favorite) to make a splash at the festival. It mostly fell beneath my notice, though, largely because there are enough comedies about relationships and the dating scene. Let me guess, dating sucks? At least the trailer looks funny, and observant in a Stillman-esque sort of way.
Morgan wrote, directed, and stars in the film, surrounded by an impressive ensemble that includes Jorma Taccone, Dree Hemingway, and Kentucker Audley, Margarita Levieva, Nora Zehetner, and Robert Schwartzman. She plays one half of a neurotic couple who can't help comparing their mostly-happy relationship to those of their friends, which sounds like a bad idea. Here's the synopsis:
Annette (Michelle Morgan) and Elliot (Jorma Taccone) are a mostly happy, moderately neurotic LA couple. Maybe Annette doesn’t enjoy game nights or taco stands as much as Elliot does, but no relationship is perfect, right? Rather than embracing their differences, Annette can only compare their relationship to their happy couple friends. This cannot be endorsed by Annette’s beautiful but romantically troubled best friend, Baker (Dree Hemingway), who is very well-versed on the bleakness of the LA dating scene. Taking its cues from classic mid-20th Century comedies with a stylish and contemporary spin, IT HAPPENED IN L.A. is an irreverent tale of life and the search for elusive love in the 21st Century.
It Happened in L.A. hits New York beginning November 3rd, followed by Los Angeles a week later. It then goes digital on November 14th.
