The Boy Downstairs

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Neti 08/08/2024 Plain character writing that's very generic. I couldn't stand the main character's hairstyle, and I know that doesn't matter but it bothered me a lot lmfao. Felt no depth for the characters and the plot was very predictable. Not worth the watch imo as it doesn't offer anything new or exciting. See more Aaron S 03/29/2023 What an honest little movie. It doesn't overreach its small space it's able to occupy and it doesn't try to say anything besides the fact the idea of "not knowing" is hard. Uncertainty and the anxiety that surrounds that is something that permeates young adulthood and frankly, I haven't been able to shake it as I grow older. Maybe nobody does and people are just really good at looking sure of themselves. In any case, what Diana (Mamet) is so good at communicating is that while your life can be overall stable in the grand scheme of things - she's got a cool ass apartment, friends, she's beautiful - that sense of instability can be looking over your shoulder at any moment. It's funny to say as a late 30's married man, but Mamet was a warm hug of relatability in The Boy Downstairs and while its story isn't exactly unique, her charisma and the charm of this movie really won me over. See more Roger H @RogerPop 03/06/2022 Most rom-coms are 100% phony, and the few that aren't are 98% phony. This one doesn't feel phony at all. The plotline doesn't have any particularly original to offer, but then don't most relationships tend to follow a few timeworn paths? This movie shows that a straightforward portrayal of the common relationship joys and heartbreaks can be tremendously moving, even without a murder plot or a bunch of yelling and screaming. Zosia Mamet's tremendous performance brings the whole movie to life. See more Ben D 08/02/2021 I was nervous at the beginning of this movie, as we quickly get the typical quirky-white-girl (Zosia Mamet)-moves-to-NYC-to-be-a-writer-but-works-in-the-service-industry (wedding dress shop)-and-somehow-can-afford-to-live-in-a-gorgeous-airy-classic-brownstone, but going forward, The Boy Downstairs was an enjoyable watch. Mamet was one of the more likable characters on HBO's Girls, but suffered from having the worst-written arc. Since then, I don't believe I've seen her in anything, and found her presence refreshing — given the initial concerns — and her wit authentic and unforced. Diana (Mamet) moves into a building wherein, unknowingly, her ex-boyfriend, Ben (Matthew Shear), lives downstairs. This plot could've taken a silly turn, amounting to silly run-ins and moments of silly happenstance, but instead it covers all the bases of awkwardness, jealousy, and re-surfacing feelings expected in the set-up, but keeps it grounded. The film mixes in flashbacks of Diana and Ben's first date, move-in, and break-up, which sometimes became a little confusing. There's a pretty good "Declaration of Loveologue"™ and I think an answer to the "will they or won't they?" plot. Sure, some of the film plays like a fantasy — besides the apartment, Diana has the greatest relationship a tenant has had with her landlord (Deirdre O'Connell) ever put on screen — but The Boy Downstairs never gets smarmy, saccharine, silly, and most importantly, boring. *Last note, the "Radiohead" line is laugh-out-loud funny. See more 07/21/2021 I really liked this romantic comedy. See more 08/29/2020 I'm writing this review as the movie plays in a different tab if that tells you anything. I will wait to post it until the end in case it magically gets better but I highly doubt it. If I had muted this movie before it started, I probably would have thought it was excellent. It's a very pretty movie, although I can't stop staring at her eyebrows. I don't know why they decided to give her such fake blonde damaged looking hair. If you listen to just the soundtrack, it's not bad, just generic. But it really started pissing me off because there was literally no reason at all for me to care about the protagonist. The movie is told with a series of flashbacks interwoven throughout and I thought, "oh, it's just really cringy now because of what happened in the flashbacks and those will give me a reason to root for her." Nope. I think the goal was for you to feel the chemistry between them, but it seemed like an average relationship. I like the guy, he was fine, still not enough of a character arc. But she literally can't talk to him in present-day and it got *so annoying.* The landlady was really cool. Her friend's characterization was so flat paper was jealous, but I don't think it was the actress's fault. The amount of "ums" and pauses and standing still looking around in silence and awkwardness and cringe is so overdone. After I started counting there were at least 7 shots of her just standing there outside of his door or just around the corner. She would be walking and then she would stop and stand there and swallow and look around and hesitate awkwardly and then start walking again. We get it. She's nervous. We got it after the first 27 times you showed us this scene and then had her say um and pause for an *excessively* long time. There it is! The line I knew was coming, "I know that I hurt you but I was scared and confused." Yawn. I paused it. My bet is that she finishes her monologue and he says that this is unfair (because it is) and then that gives her the motivation to work on her novel (they show a stack of pages she wrote but when they show her writing it, it is always the same paragraph - not really introductory but also not a middle kind of paragraph - with nothing else on the page) and eventually he comes back and they live boringly ever after. Also, this movie was marked as a comedy... It's definitely not. So it's over now and I nailed the ending. In summary, this movie was boring. See more Read all reviews

The Boy Downstairs

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