Finding Bliss (2009)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Julie Davis

Writer:

Julie Davis (written by)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

an arousing comedy

Plot:

A romantic comedy that explores the adult film industry through the eyes of an idealistic 25 year-old award winning film school grad. |

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman

Cast

Leelee Sobieski	...	Jody Balaban
Matthew Davis	...	Jeff Drake
Donnamarie Recco	...	Kathleen
Denise Richards	...	Laura
Caroline Aaron	...	Debra Balaban
Tim Bagley	...	Alan Balaban
Kristen Johnston	...	Irene
Jamie Kennedy	...	Richard 'Dick' Harder
Mircea Monroe	...	Sindi / Brandi
P.J. Byrne	...	Gary
Zach Cumer	...	Bobby Daples
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Maggy Bashaw	...	15-year old Actress
Christa Campbell	...	Kato
Mario Cassem	...	Morris Goldstein
Wes Deitrick	...	Agent
R.J. Hampton	...	Awards Show Guest
Sammi Hanratty	...	Little Jody
Michael Harris	...	Professor Emerich
Bradley Hollibaugh	...	Bodyguard
Ron Jeremy	...	Actor
Kimbre Lancaster	...	Angie
Mr. Marcus	...	Jake B. Bigg
Garry Marshall	...	Himself
Sue Melanson	...	Graduate / Parent
Kevin Partridge	...	Brett Miller
Patrick Treadway	...	Marty

Runtime:

Germany:96 min (European Film Market)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

Spokane, Washington, USA

Company:

LightShow Entertainment

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Denise Richards: It's Complicated: Denise Does Slamdance (#2.2)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Love Unconditional

Entertaining and Funny; At times, Shocking and Touching

I saw this at Slamdance and I really enjoyed it.

It's about a struggling filmmaker (Leelee S) who takes a job editing porn, but it's really more about her character's journey into her own issues (of the past and present) ... and the fact that this self-discovery takes place amidst the porn industry, well, that adds a good dose of humor and a bit of sex.

There's some laugh out loud moments, usually in the form of shock/crude humor or irony. There's also some drama and romance mixed in there, so it's honestly hard to classify it to one genre of film.

It's a lower-budget indie, but it has a great cinematic look with great performances by all the actors. Jamie Kennedy adds some air-headed humor, and Kristen Johnston adds some cutting humor (loved her). The actor opposite Leelee (Matthew Davis) initial appears as a jaded, cynical character, but of course, there is more beneath the surface and it's rewarding to see his character slowly unveil.

Fun movie, overall. Why an 8 and not a 10? I guess my only criticism is that I got a touch bored somewhere around the middle of the film. Perhaps the shock of the shock humor had lost it's shocking value by that point but we weren't yet to the meaty drama. I don't know. To me, it kind of lagged briefly before getting back on track.

But that's a small thing. Most of the time, I "found bliss" when watching FINDING BLISS.