Simon is a geeky scientist who is not so smart in the Love Dept. He sets his sights much to high and like a typical guy he foolishly lets pretty blonde Jane walk all over him. Enter sweet co-worker Trese and cad roommate Lorenzo and you have a recipe for disaster. Or a really good movie.

Let’s first start off by saying that this was an indie romantic comedy that will hopefully make its way onto DVD in the near future. I caught this at a local screening in Livermore and the theater was nearly empty. That was a travesty. Considering the dumbfucks that shell out millions to see garbage like the very unromantic How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days or the very unfunny I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, it is appalling to know that a more deserving film like this wouldn’t get the attention it deserves.

There are so many fun characters here. Simon advises Jane to “lower her standards” when he is ironically chasing in his own Quixote-esque pursuit. So pathetic is he that he even keeps a mirror in his front pocket for Jane to use whenever she desires staring at herself. There is the “Chigger,” which is a Chinese wigger, who treats his girlfriend like a doormat. Ironically, he changes his bad ways and she isn’t quite as interested in him anymore. There is the hot roommate Lorenzo (swoon!) who may actually have a heart of gold. I say they do a male version of Pretty Woman with him in the lead. Take that Julia Roberts! Simon himself looks like a combination of a young Jude Law and Ray Liotta. And Riles the borderline retarded football hero is totally bangworthy. Alright, there are a couple of hot chicks too. Jane is a gorgeous gal, but her behavior is disgusting. I’m sure there are plenty of guys who will like her despite that. And I really dug Trese’s alcoholic closeted lesbian roommate Vivian. Poor girl needs some love.

On a side note, I was going to add that these actors were great and I hope to see them in the future, but they must already have decent management I guess. Clayne Crawford (Simon) is in Wristcutters: A Love Story, Judy Marte (Trese) Raising Victor Vargas, fine ass Warren Christie (Lorenzo) i>Bachelor Party 2, Sarah Wright (Jane) in Made of Honor, and John Wynn (Jimmy the Chigger) in Uwe Boll’s sure-to-be hysterical Tunnel Rats. And apparently Kel Mitchell, of Keenan & Kel fame, was in this and I didn’t even recognize him. Huh.

Oh the laughs are aplenty. There is the scene where Simon explains to a kid that it is God’s fault that he missed a basketball shot. Lorenzo’s ex-girlfriend had left him for a creepy Christian who reminded the hell out of me of Preacher Boy in There Will Be Blood. Simon moans that a woman attached by the head to her twin sister somehow manages to get laid more than he does. And then there is the weird Christian hip hop dance (!?!) by a couple of young ladies. But I laughed the hardest during a poetry slam where a gentleman recited, “Paradigms. I drop a ‘Pair of Dimes’ in a meter.” Please tell me I am not the only person that gets that joke (Hint: Paradigms is pronounced like “pair uh dimes.”)

But what gets better still is that we are given insight into these characters especially when you learn of how Simon and Lorenzo the Lothario become best friends. The added backstory makes you care more about the characters. Writer/ director Kedar Korde even managed to throw in a little bit of Columbine shooting-type mass hysteria in the mix. Incidentally, I grew even more annoyed with Simon’s emotionally stunted goals and sided more with the womanizing Lorenzo. At least his intentions were well known.

The film culminates into the perfect confrontation where Jane completely crushes Simon’s heart. I swear I could hear it breaking right in front of me. I dare you not to cringe during this scene. And of course, Simon lets down nice girl Trese immediately afterward and once sleazy roommate Lorenzo redeems himself. And Jane ends up exactly where you would expect an empty, cold-hearted person to be- alone.

But this is where I was unhappy with the film. Following these commonsensical events, the ending was a complete disappointment. I think we are led to believe that Simon somehow manages to get the girl…only I do not believe he deserved her. In fact, it almost made me angry that they ended up together. I would much rather have seen her with Lorenzo. And No, I will not say which girl I am referring to, but it is probably obvious.

This is another one of those rare breed romantic comedies that dares to be…actually funny. I place this in the ranks of Forgetting Sarah Marshall in that it has something to appeal to both men and women. It portrays both genders in a fairly accurate light. And as opposed to the lame rom-coms that focus on one idiotic couple overcoming one simple problem to reach the end goal of living happily ever after, this film showcases an ensemble cast with varying problems. There should be at least one situation the viewer can identify with.