Movie Review: People Places Things -- Jemaine Event

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In a summer filled with cinematic bombast and overkill, it's always a nice surprise to find a charming little comedy with heart like People Places Things.

Directed by James Strouse, the film stars the reliably droll Jemaine Clement as Will, a seemingly happy father of young twins living with his mate Charlie (Stephanie Allyne) in a Brooklyn brownstone. That happy existence is shattered when he catches his wife in a compromising position with another man at their daughters' birthday party.*

We rejoin the action a year later. Charlie is now living with that other guy, Gary (Michael Chernus), a reticent performance artist, in the Brooklyn brownstone. Will, however, lives alone in Queens; he's a graphic novelist who teaches the form at the New School. He only gets to spend time with his daughters on weekends, which he finds unsatisfying.*

He complains about that to Charlie, who gives him unexpected primary custody while she figures out her life. Which throws the shambling, routine-bound Will's existence into something of a tizzy.

He's also navigating the dating world for the first time in a while, because one of his students (Jessica Williams from The Daily Show) decides to fix him up with her divorced mother Diane (Regina Hall).*

The plot is almost beside the point.

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