MY FIRST MISTER

2001

In her directorial debut, actress Christine Lahti gives us an insightful, beautiful case study of two neurotic losers...he, a 50-year-old owner of a men's clothing shop in an L.A. mall; she, a 17-year-old misfit, who is screaming out for attention. When they come together, they are one-dimensional stereotypes. He (Albert Brooks) is afraid of his own shadow and stays at home in his neat little house filled with neat piles of magazines...the reading of which he substitutes for friends. She (Leelee Sobieski) is pierced, tattooed and the grungiest 20-year-old since that creep in "Ghost World." Her parents (Carol Kane & Michael McKean) are horrendous, as is her pot-head biological father (John Goodman.) But, as these two pathetic creatures get to know each other, they bring something wonderful to each others lives, and eventually to the lives of everyone around them. The story is often sappy, mawkish, and soap-opera-ish, but it's also beautifully written to develop three-dimensional characters, and is expertly acted by an ensemble of fine actors. Oprah will love it, but so did I!!!

4 Stars

NJB