A_Different_Drummer Review of A Perfect Man

A Perfect Man (2013)

Engaging, compelling, "backwards" romantic comedy...

[9/10 · 5 November 2013]

Engaging, well-directed, beautifully photographed, "backwards" romantic comedy, very quirky, very indie, and clearly destined to be very unappreciated - especially since (many thanks for the 'headsup' from another IMDb user) it was actually made in 2000 under another working title, and could not find a distributor until now. Some notes: 1. Jeanne Tripplehorn is one of the most under-utilized actresses in the game, and this film makes that fact very clear. Although Liev Schreiber is good, she is never less than great. To revive an old cliché, she "delivers entire lines of dialogue using only her eyes." Nice eyes too. It had been almost 10 years, for example, since then-superstar Kevin Costner selected Tripplehorn to provide all the oestrogen (ie, female energy) for an entire epic, Waterworld (also a somewhat misunderstood film) and frankly she still looked spectacular in this one. 2. This is indie and it shows. Not a bad thing. Sometimes avoiding the Hollywood formula subliminally frees the viewers from having to respond to certain scenes in a predictable way (Pavlovian) and gives both the film-maker and the audience more room to experiment. If this film had been made in the mainstream, for example, it would star Michelle Monaghan. It's "that" kind of film. 3. The story? Instead of guy finds girl, guy gets girl (the standard), here we have guy already has girl, guy loses girl, guy (may) get a shot at retrieving girl. Again, this is a "backwards" story but, given a chance, it works just fine. 4. The IMDb synopsis explains it is all about a guy who falls in love with his wife "all over again" over the phone while believing she is someone else. This is incorrect. Not IMDb's fault -- no doubt taken from the PR material provided by whatever distributor is still desperately trying to move the product. But that plot twist is entirely incidental to the main story, it is indeed not the story, and it misrepresents the story. The fact that even the people distributing the film may not have actually seen it tells you that this flick is still unlikely to find the audience it deserves. 5. Supporting cast is excellent. Joelle Carter, well ahead of her success in Justified, is radiant (er, hot) as ever, and Louise Fletcher, also fairly underexposed, is more than adequate. Even the dog gives a brilliant performance. (He plays a dog, but an exceptionally friendly one). 6. Some reviewers may tell you this is a film about marriage. Bunk. It is a film about men and women, and the communication issues therein. It is well worth a look.