Written and directed by: Alex Holdridge
Review by: Laura Hawbaker
After a summer of glitzy Hollywood blockbusters and slick, Cosmo-Vogue romantic comedies, “In Search of a Midnight Kiss” breathes a charming breath of fresh reality into the cinemas. Photoshop and internet dating are juxtaposed with plumes of cigarette smoke: this is a romance for modern bohos, a “Casablanca” of the digital age.
Set in the very happening, very penniless Los Angeles hipster scene, the hero of this indie is Wilson (Scoot McNairy), a struggling screenwriter who has arguably had the worst year a man could have: he’s lost his girl, his car, his every possession, the laptop containing his screenplay, has no job, exactly $108 dollars in his bank account, and his roommate, Jacob, just caught him masturbating to a photograph of Min, Jacob’s girlfriend. Wilson’s life sucks.
It’s New Years Eve, and with no prospective kisses coming Wilson’s way, Jacob (Brian McGuire) urges him to post a craigslist classified. Within the hour he receives a phone call from Vivian, (Sara Simmonds), a volatile wannabe actress who may have more emotional problems than he does. The two are clearly mismatched: he uses words like “misanthrope,” and she thinks “books suck.” But over the course of the evening, these two battered souls challenge the idea that “L.A. is where love comes to die” and develop a blossoming bond that is as endearing as it is genuine.
Robert Murphy’s dream-like black and white cinematography paints a beautiful portrait of the normally drab, unromantic setting of downtown Hollywood. The whimsical soundtrack is made up of contributions from Okkervil River, Shearwater and Sybil, while Alex Holdrige’s vibrant script and playful direction provide all the color the film needs.
“In Search of a Midnight Kiss”—crafted by a group of close-knit friends from Austin, Texas, who all now live on the Hollywood fringes—has much in common with other stripped down romances of the same ilk. Anne Walker-McBay, whose credits include a film that invites inevitable comparisons, “Before Sunrise”, produced it. Without the benefit of a budget, celebrities, a designer wardrobe or the usual romantic comedy gags the film relies on the authenticity of its characters and the entertaining appeal of its clever, heart-felt dialogue. “In Search of a Midnight Kiss” is sure to resonate with young, broke, hopelessly hip romantics everywhere.
