Todd Louiso's "Hello I Must Be Going" stars Melanie Lynskey as Amy, a young woman who moves in with her wealthy parents after a bitter divorce.
During "Going's" first act, Louiso indulges in light satire. Amy's wealthy parents are mocked for being vapid, a more liberal family are mocked for being airheads and a son fakes being gay in order to flatter his progressive, ultra-tolerant parents. The film then turns into a little Girl Power screed. Here Amy learns to sympathise with her mother, who's been neglected by Amy's oft absent father. Amy also has an affair with a nineteen year old guy (Christopher Abbott), and kicks away her ex-husband, an adulterous man whom Amy delights in milking for a divorce settlement. At first glance the film thus seems to be indulging in a little reverse-sexism, but Louiso has other intentions. Amy's dad is ultimately a nice guy and Abbott's character ultimately teaches Amy to love herself.
Ever since "The Graduate" (1967) and "Harold and Maude" (1971), the older woman-younger man paradigm has been fairly mainstream. "Hello I Must Be Going", though, seems to offer the reverse of the countless indie films released annually in which a young, pixie faced woman exists only to "heal" the wounds of a depressed older man. And so here Amy self-identifies as a loser, incapable of being loved, an "ailment" which an incredulous fling promptly cures; nothing like being adored by a teenager, apparently, to kick-start your libido.
6/10 – Worth one viewing.
During "Going's" first act, Louiso indulges in light satire. Amy's wealthy parents are mocked for being vapid, a more liberal family are mocked for being airheads and a son fakes being gay in order to flatter his progressive, ultra-tolerant parents. The film then turns into a little Girl Power screed. Here Amy learns to sympathise with her mother, who's been neglected by Amy's oft absent father. Amy also has an affair with a nineteen year old guy (Christopher Abbott), and kicks away her ex-husband, an adulterous man whom Amy delights in milking for a divorce settlement. At first glance the film thus seems to be indulging in a little reverse-sexism, but Louiso has other intentions. Amy's dad is ultimately a nice guy and Abbott's character ultimately teaches Amy to love herself.
Ever since "The Graduate" (1967) and "Harold and Maude" (1971), the older woman-younger man paradigm has been fairly mainstream. "Hello I Must Be Going", though, seems to offer the reverse of the countless indie films released annually in which a young, pixie faced woman exists only to "heal" the wounds of a depressed older man. And so here Amy self-identifies as a loser, incapable of being loved, an "ailment" which an incredulous fling promptly cures; nothing like being adored by a teenager, apparently, to kick-start your libido.
6/10 – Worth one viewing.