Beau Jest

If you like MOONSTRUCK, MY BIG FAT Greek WEDDING, or romantic comedies in general, you'll love BEAU JEST. First time film director James Sherman has done a terrific job adapting his hit play to the screen. Although the story concerns a Jewish family, its theme is universal: the need for adult children to be true to their own feelings and goals vs. their desire to please their parents. At the screening I caught the audience laughed almost constantly at Sherman's razor sharp dialog because it is rooted in truth and character. Sherman never resorts to the easy bodily functions and gross out jokes that make so many other films cheap and predictable. His sparkling cast includes Lainie Kazan, Seymour Cassel, and Willie Garson (of SEX AND THE CITY), who, as Sara's psychotherapist brother, gets one of the biggest belly laughs in the film when he reveals what he tells his patients who blame all their problems on their parents. Robyn Cohen, as Sara, and Tony Daley, as Bob, have wonderful chemistry. Put this one on your "must see" list.