Film

In Search Of a Midnight Kiss (2008)

Director: Alex Holdridge

Movie review

From Time Out Chicago

In Search of a Midnight Kiss bears all the warning signs of an excruciating experience: an opening narration apparently recorded under heavy meds; “authentic” plotlessness; Woody Allen–esque musings on love and loneliness, accompanied by a Dixieland score; the vague aura of autobiography; a sensitive hipster protagonist, who’s only got $100 in his bank account but who apparently has his shit together because, you know, he’s the star of the film.

And yet—yet—In Search of a Midnight Kiss is pretty irresistible all the same. It’s less mumblecore than Richard Linklater, and beneath the surface affectation is a quality of writing that puts most indie upstarts to shame. (This is writer-director Holdridge’s third feature.) This story of the world’s most improbably successful Craigslist date owes much of its charm to its cast, who navigate a treacherous course of angst and eccentricity: Searching for a last-minute New Year’s Eve hookup, pushing-30 Wilson (McNairy) gets a call from pill-popping actress Vivian (Simmonds), who gives her prospective dates exactly five minutes to win her over. Needless to say, Wilson passes the test, and as they stroll around downtown L.A. (shot in gorgeous black and white; Thom Andersen, if you ever make Los Angeles Plays Itself 2, include this movie), Holdridge finds uncommon poignancy in their entirely common frustrations. The movie is a model of how to infuse a shopworn formula with quiet gravitas.