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Sex and Breakfast
R1 - America - First Look Pictures Review written by and copyright: James Teitelbaum (2nd February 2008). |
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The Film
 In this 2007 indie film, two couples are having relationship troubles. All concerned parties are in their twenties. Both couples reluctantly go to a seminar being conducted by a kindly older woman, who advocates group sex therapy. In other words, she puts two couples into a room, and then has them swap partners, who then go at it in front of each other. Somehow, this is going to make things better for both couples, because, you know, watching some stranger boink your significant other is exactly the way to fix a bad relationship. One couple is made up of James (Macaulay Culkin) and Heather (Alexis Dziena). She thinks the group sex therapy is a great idea, he is against it. Dziena was last seen striding around buck naked as Sharon Stone's daughter in Jim Jarmusch's "Broken Flowers" (2005). Culkin is that kid from "Home Alone" (1990). He's grown up now, and (in stark contrast to Dziena) is definitely not someone I wanted to see naked. Fortunately, there is actually only one sex scene in this movie, and Culkin's pasty flesh is not dwelt upon for very long. The other couple is Renee (Eliza Dushku) and Ellis (Kuno Becker). She thinks the group sex therapy is a great idea, he is against it. The casting of Dziena and Dushku in this film together was maybe not the best advised decision; the two girls look very much alike. Becker plays Ellis as a fiery Latino man whose Hispanic accent waxes and wanes depending on his level of emotional intensity (and/or the availability of his dialogue coach). Dushku has perhaps the best role of the bunch. There are basically only two other characters in the film. Betty (Jaime Ray Newman) is a bohemian waitress who comes between Renee and Ellis, while Charlie (Eric Lively) is a grade-A moron who Renee was once involved with; his visit creates tension between her and James. "Sex and Breakfast" is a film trying really, really hard to explore sexuality, gender issues, and relationships from the perspective of the current crop of twenty-somethings. Unfortunately, the film is stiffly written and limply acted. None of the characters turns in a believable performance. Even if they had been able to step up their acting game a bit, the lines and the story they are given do not ring true. The character dynamics fail to feel comfortable; the characters are not living in the same world as the rest of us. A lot of the drama seems forced. Low points are a scene where James encounters one of Heather's neighbors (Tracie Thoms), and another in which Ellis goes ballistic on Renee and Betty. I wasn't buying any of it.
Video
Presented in a widescreen ratio of 1.85:1 and anamorphically enhanced, "Sex and Breakfast" is broken up into 12 scenes with a total running time of 1:21:33. A great deal of this film takes place indoors, at night, or in other low-light conditions. The camerawork is often shaky. Hand-held cameras in low light is a bad idea, and the resulting exaggerated film grain (from using high-speed film) is fairly evident. The picture can be a bit murky, but that is a fault of the source print, not the transfer.
Audio
"Sex and Breakfast" is presented in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, and English 2.0 Stereo. Subtitles are in English and Spanish. I would think that the stereo mix of this one would be sufficient. It is a character drama, and largely takes place indoors. There aren't too many opportunities for the surrounds to get a workout. However, if you are a fan of that obligatory scene in movies where a heartfelt pop song plays as the characters contemplate their destinies, then this is the movie for you. There are at least six of those scenes in this movie, so if you like introspective alt-rock, then this will be the best sounding movie you'll experience all year.
Extras
The only bonus feature are a collection of trailers, below is a closer look at these. Included on the disc is the film's original theatrical trailer which runs for 1 minute. We've also got an extensive collection of bonus trailers for: - "Strays" which runs for 2 minutes. - "Smiley Face" which runs for 1 minute 20 seconds. - "Paris Je T'aime" which runs for 2 minutes 25 seconds. - "Broken" which runs for 53 seconds. - "The Contract" which runs for 1 minute 55 seconds. - "Journey to the End of the Night" which runs for 1 minute 56 seconds. - "Big Nothing" which runs for 2 minutes 1 second. - "Mr. Fix-It" which runs for 1 minute 27 seconds. - "Relative Strangers" which runs for 2 minutes 8 seconds. - "The Boys and Girls Guide to Getting Down" which runs for 2 minutes 14 seconds. - "King of California" which runs for 2 minutes 20 seconds. - "Blonde and Blonder" which runs for 1 minute 17 seconds. - "The Amateurs" which runs for 1 minute 56 seconds. - "Day Zero" which runs for 1 minute 29 seconds.
Overall
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