Princess Cyd

Dang I was so stoked for this coming off of Henry Gamble and it's just kinda boring and basic. Not that there isn't some interesting framing and direction but it doesn't really add up to much.

Has some emotional resonance to it, but too infrequently rises above its production limitations to really make an impact. It often looks and sounds like a TV show, and when it comes to the acting, Spence’s annoying manner of speaking can be attributed to her likeably pretentious character, but White’s awkward, slack-jawed performance is so bad it pretty much tanks the entire film. If you don’t believe her you can’t believe anything else

stephen cone is remarkably attuned to his actors, coaxing out open, earnest performances, framing them with great warmth and sensitivity. i really can't stress what a talented director he is. that said, i'm not sure i'll be wishlisting another of his movies unless it says "written by: literally anyone other than stephen cone", because there's only so much anyone can do with such trite middlebrow guff. i've seen a few compare cone to sallitt; allow me to recommend THE UNSPEAKABLE ACT once again.

I liked this a lot. It took a minute to grow on me, but I thoroughly enjoyed how it didn't go in the direction I thought & instead of going for the conflict/drama you might expect from the scenario it took a different route. There's a genuine wholesomeness & hope to the entire thing, which I loved. The performances are great throughout, with Spence & Pinnick really shining in every scene. It focuses a bit less on Cyd than it maybe should in my humble opinion, but it's still very well done.

I appreciated the curious tension that exists between Miranda and Cyd--they are interested in each other and different from each other, but not really combative. Cone's sensitivity to detail and the way he patiently films these characters interacting with each other makes me grateful for his work and looking forward to the next film. I would like to see him explore something outside the "gay coming of age" genre, this being his third straight feature of that kind.

Fairly generic indie romcom. Heavily plays on the beauty of the main character, which always bothers me, even moreso when said character is an underage girl and the director an older man.