Good on Paper

New on Netflix.

Directed by Kimmy Gatewood, written and starring Iliza Shlesinger is this based on a true story film. Shlesinger is stand up comic and jobbing actress Andrea Singer, who we find at another frustrating audition before heading back to the airport. On the flight home she meets Dennis (Ryan Hansen) who takes her up on an offer to come see her stand up show that same night. As they see each other more and against Andrea’s instincts they become a couple. It doesn’t take long for the relationship to come apart as Andrea’s suspicions about Dennis grow, is he really who he seems to be?

Regardless of some sniffy reviews I really enjoyed this rather original comedy. It’s an interesting mix of “anti romcom”, dark comedy and psychological drama (Although a light hearted one), all of this interspersed with clips of Andrea sharing the story as part of her standup, all of which worked for me.

Shlesinger is fun as the title character, and Nelson a fine balance of believable and creepy. The supporting cast is equally entertaining, especially Margaret Cho as cynical bar owner Margot and Rebecca Rittenhouse as Andrea’s acting nemesis Serrena.

The humour is pretty constant and is well balanced with the light hearted but still tense drama. There is also some social commentary around dating, gender politics and entitlement all without been preachy.

A well written, pretty smart, humorous and original comedy that at 92 minutes whizzes by and while it’s had some sniffy reviews, ignore them, you may just enjoy it as much as I did.