Mr. Roosevelt (2017)

The Age of Commercialism

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

My score: 5/10. The time I feared has come: millennials are making movies. This is a hodgepodge of backgrounds as reasons to give Noël Wells a stage for her brand of humor. It's a knock off from Zoe Deschanel but not as funny. This film is now streaming on Netflix.After a loved one falls ill, 25-year-old struggling comedian Emily Martin returns to her college town of Austin, Texas and must come to terms with her past while staying with her ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend.There is a lot wrong here but let's start with the basics: if you put a talent in the lead role don't rely on her talent alone. There HAS to be a story to showcase what she does. She was in "Master of None" and my wife who saw it tells me she was cute and did well. From what I have seen of the show, which isn't much, there is a story intertwining the episodes together. It also features a comic, Aziz Ansari.Let's look at a perfect example of how to get a comic noticed in a film: "The Big Sick." I will say there is some good writing in this in the way of jokes. I caught myself laughing several times so there's that. But as a whole the plot is not believable having her go live with her ex who she dumped so she can attend her old cat's funeral. That's just not a good premise. Apparently they disagreed because they named the film after the dead cat.I will certainly look for more from Noël Wells and she isn't bad altogether but she has a long way to go to write, direct, and star in a film as she does in this one. Humility my dear. I understand many will praise her for her bravery in taking on all roles. Ok but there is a point where bravery becomes just a reckless bad idea like jumping off a cliff into a waterfall in front of millions ... topless. 5/10.

I liked the way this film pushes back against the prevailing indie wisdom that anyone with a smidge of artistic talent just needs to follow their dreams until they catch them... The script may seem flimsy at times (maybe one too many chance meetings, even for a small college town?), but the setup's quite ingenious: UT Austin grad Emily's leading the dreary life of an aspiring sketch comic in LA when the cat she left behind with her ex gets sick. Back in Austin, things have changed: her ex, a struggling rock guitarist, is hoping to get his real-estate license; his new S.O.'s a stylish, code-writing "entrepreneur," and the remnants of Emily's old life have been consigned to a backyard shed. At dinner with the couple and their bougie friends, Emily has a serious meltdown. Suffice it to say that it takes her a while to resolve all her issues... Richard Linklater fans will enjoy the scenes set in historic weird Austin; Daniella Pineda stands out as a kickass rock drummer/waitress.

So this is a film about a lady who leaves without notice her boyfriend and her cat behind as she relocates across country. Months maybe a year later she gets news her cat passed away, so she travels back across country to pay her condolences to a cat she ditched and left behind.. Like seriously, she left the cat behind.. why would she pay for a plane ticket and be all crazy about this cat? Completely pointless not to mention she is a bit more annoying than funny. Not sure how it won awards. Mainly watched it to see how a self wrote/directed film would work while playing the lead role. Id have to say Tommy Wiseau did a much better job with the Room, even though that's terrible. At least there were some good boob shots.

Mr. Roosevelt is about a struggling comedian, Emily Martin played by Noel Wells, who returns home to care for her sick cat, Mr. Roosevelt. I gotta say, Mr. Roosevelt is a great name for a cat. Even better, his first name is Teddy. She is forced to stay with her ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend. Some good and bad times follow, and as usually happens in this sort of movie, she learns something about herself. Wells is also writer and director of Mr. Roosevelt. Wells is new to me, and I didn't know she was on SNL, and on Master of None, which I haven't watched . She is funny and likable. She gets her shtick in throughout Mr. Roosevelt. I can't say I'm a fan of her silly voices. I do love how she takes her generation to task. I kinda like Mr. Roosevelt and I kinda like Noel Wells. The movie was pretty good and it was pretty funny, and you'll see a young and funny woman shaping her craft or her craft shaping her, or whatever. But I don't think I want to see anymore movies about struggling comedians (or actors, or musicians), especially ones played by struggling comedians (or actors, or musicians).