SISTERS, Sisters

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: 'Sisters' on Blogcritics.

As of today, the film Sisters is available to own. Released in theaters late last year, the movie tells the story of two messed-up female siblings who come together one last time in their childhood home to throw a huge party and recapture what they’ve lost. With an impressive comedic cast, it’s a new twist on an old genre, the party film, with the young-at-heart instead of the young (though they certainly aren’t old, either).

The stars of Sisters are the great Tina Fey (30 Rock) and Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation). Tina is Kate, the fun-loving sister that can’t hold a job or a place to live, and has alienated her daughter, Haley (Madison Davenport, Shameless). Amy is Maura, the uptight one who can’t keep a husband. While Maura is admittedly more responsible, her issue of not knowing how to loosen up is a problem, too, and so the two must help one another, each rubbing off on the other.

That sounds like a very familiar formula, and it is. Even mixing it with a party film (most of the running time takes place at a celebration on a single night) isn’t novel. Nor is the basic love interest for Maura, James (Ike Barinholtz, The Mindy Project), whose only defining characteristic is that he’s nice to Maura because he likes her, and knows how to fix things for her.

What makes Sisters unique, though, is the exact manner in which it tackles this premise. By putting all the characters around forty-ish, it adds a new element. And while Maura and Kate may be the only party-goers with full personalities, seeing their high school chums fall back into old patterns and stereotypes and reopen old wounds is satisfying, too, like a school reunion, but in a totally wild setting. It took awhile for me to start appreciating exactly what makes Sisters special, but by the end of the two hours (yep, it’s a full two hours, not ninety minutes like most comedies), I think I finally understood it.

Helping the film’s appeal along is a stellar supporting cast, which includes many Saturday Night Live alum and cast members, joining fellow players Tina, Amy, and the movie’s scribe Paula Pell, who created some of SNL‘s most memorable late ’90s characters. Those actors are Bobby Moynihan, Kate McKinnon, John Lutz, Chris Parnell, Rachel Dratch, and the incomparable Maya Rudolph. Toss in Samantha Bee (The Daily Show), Jon Glaser (Delocated), Renee Elise Goldsberry (The Good Wife), Matt Oberg (The Onion News Network), Greta Lee (New Girl), John Leguizamo (Moulin Rogue), WWE wrestler John Cena, and Life in Pieces couple Dianne Wiest and James Brolin, and you would be hard-pressed to find a better ensemble.

I guess Sisters isn’t for everyone, and if you don’t get that bizarre take on a relatable familial chemistry that it’s going for, you may be left confused. But once you embrace the madness and just let yourself enjoy the performances, it becomes a fun way to spend a couple of hours.

As far as extras go, there are tons. Besides an unrated version of the movie itself and the expected deleted and extended scenes, there are outtakes, unused improv moments, and behind-the-scenes material to explain what the filmmakers are doing. There’s also an interview with writer Pell, commentary with her, the director, and the two leads, and and an extra on special effects. It’s quite a lot for a release such as this, and thankfully much of it is showing us more of the funny performers in their element.

As always, I recommend blu-ray over DVD. Visually, there are some bright Florida colors and the dark light show at the party that beg for good contrast. In the second half of the film, there’s a lot going on with the audio, from dialogue to music to ambiance, all mixed together. In a testament to the overall quality, I detected no flaws in any of it during my HD viewing, and I never had trouble understanding what the characters are saying. I can’t help but think a standard definition experience would be harder to stomach, needing the crispness to balance everything out appropriately.

Sisters is available now on blu-ray, DVD, and digital download.

THE MINDY PROJECT Has "All My Problems Solved Forever..."

THE MINDY PROJECT, one of only two new broadcast sitcoms last year to garner a second season, returns with “All My Problems Solved Forever…,” now available on Hulu. In the episode, Mindy (Mindy Kaling) is flown home from Haiti to have emergency gallbladder surgery. Once back in NYC, though, she questions whether she should marry Pastor Casey (Anders Holm) and return to the island.

Mindy is a girl who just doesn’t know what she wants yet. She has been taught to think life is like a romantic comedy, and thus tries to follow the plot she thinks is laid out for her. She did so when she started dating the holy man, and when she followed him to a poor, third-world country, believing it would lead to her happy ending. After all, Casey is the key to “All My Problems Solved Forever…” for Mindy, right?

Then, Mindy continues along the path with him when she accepts his marriage proposal early in the episode and agrees to give up her dreams of a big wedding in favor of an intimate ceremony in her apartment, even though it doesn’t feel right to her, no more right than waking up for jungle sunrises. She just gets carried away. Mindy puts her whole heart into everything she does, and even when things start to turn wrong, she carries on.

There is something to be said for this quality of follow. It takes a lot of honor and determination. However, Mindy also needs to find herself and what she really wants. Sacrificing her own dreams isn’t right, and won’t get her the guy she should be with. Emotionally, Mindy is still a teenager, and she needs to work on herself before she is ready to figure out life with someone else.

Once one realizes that, THE MINDY PROJECT’s title and premise makes sense. And it’s a funny show, well worth one’s time. Without spoiling what happens at the end of “All My Problems Solved Forever…,” I will say that fans of both the show and the character should be at least partially satisfied.

The other major relationship in the show right now is that which is between Danny (Chris Messina) and his ex-wife, Christina (Chloe Sevigny). In the season premiere, Christina wants a lot more sex than Danny is willing to give her (though that is merely a symptom of their larger problems) so they begin seeing sex therapist Doctor Paul Leotard (recent Comedy Central Roast subject James Franco).

I really like Franco in this role, which works well in the established chemistry. Not only is Leotard replacing Mindy in the office, even taking her nickname of “Dr. L.,” but he also integrates himself into the dynamics between various characters. He isn’t sticking around long-term, but while he lasts, Leotard will be a great source of conflict and humor for the series.

Danny is a lot like Mindy in his tenacity and drive to do the right thing. However, he is a bit wiser and should know better. He being with Christina is just as wrong as Mindy and Casey, not finding what he needs from a relationship in Christina. Some may call it stubbornness, but Danny tries to make it work anyway.

Now, I’m not saying that Mindy and Danny should be together anytime soon. There are plenty of shippers for the pair who are fans of THE MINDY PROJECT, and this segment will get a scene to tickle their fancy in this episode. However, as I’ve said, Mindy must grow before she’s ready for a long-term, stable relationship that works, and Danny is the end-up-with type of man, not the experiment-on-the-way guy. So, for now, they should remain apart.

I do think there will be more opportunity for Mindy and Danny to bond this year, though, with Mindy’s gal pals reduced to recurring status, and completely absent from the season premiere. She has her co-workers, Jeremy Reed (Ed Weeks), Morgan (Ike Barinholtz), Besty (Zoe Jarman), Beverly (Beth Grant), and, very minimally, Tamra (Xosha Roquemore), to talk to, but none of them really fill that friend gap for Mindy. Danny may be masculine in some ways, but in others he’s a total fem. Plus, a strong friendship for them could set the stage for something more later.

Now, there is a little bit more to THE MINDY PROJECT besides relationship woes. But those are mainly just the funny gags and lines about relationship woes. After undergoing many changes in season one, the show should know what it is now and serve their audience better. “All My Problems Solved Forever…” is a good step in the right direction.

THE MINDY PROJECT returns Tuesday, September 17^th at 9:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

The Mindy Project celebrates "Thanksgiving"

One conceit of television that sort of goes against reality is that Thanksgiving is a time for families, but usually casts of characters gather with friends instead. Sure, we get the occasional relative stopping by as a guest star. But it's not the same as the main characters each returning to their homes every year for the holiday, which is what most of us do in real life. I was surprised, then, that while The Mindy Project did not exactly divide up everyone, there were distinct groups who split up.

The most realistic thread involved Betsy (Zoe Jarman) visiting her clan, with Jeremy (Ed Weeks), who isn't native to America, tagging along. Too bad Betsy is also the least interesting character on the series. Jeremy gets along splendidly with her relations, as he almost always does with whoever he happens to be in the presence of, while Betsy reverts to childlike behavior. Sadly, it didn't seem all that interesting or novel for Betsy to act like this, and Jeremy is just along for the ride.

The better story involves Mindy (Mindy Kaling) and Morgan (Ike Barinholtz) attending Gwen's (Anna Camp) large party. True, this isn't a family affair, but it does give Mindy the chance to pine over Josh (Tommy Dewey), while also bumping into her ex, Dennis (Ed Helms). Ex may be too strong a word, considering they only shared one date (in the first episode of the series), but Dennis functions here as if they'd been in a relationship. Mindy's antics, while over-the-top, as expected, are amusing. It's just too bad there isn't more for Morgan to do.

Meanwhile, Shauna (Amanda Setton) goes minibar hopping with her girlfriends. If any character would blow off their family on Thanksgiving, it would be Shuana, so this actually makes sense, even though she is barely seen and doesn't actually get plot in the episode. This is typical for her, which is probably why her character will soon be departing the show. Too bad, because her personality isn't matched by any other character, and she shifts the group dynamics in an interesting way.

While I am slowly warming up to The Mindy Project, I do feel like the best characters sometimes get shafted in favor of less intriguing people. I'm not complaining about Mindy, the star of the show, who is doing just fine with her arcs. But I really like Morgan and Shauna, and they take back seats to Jeremy and Betsy, who aren't nearly as compelling. A few tweaks to the formula would be nice.

The best part of The Mindy Project, week in and week out, is Danny (Chris Messina). In "Thanksgiving," he hangs out alone in the empty office. This totally gels with his character, and he seems happy while doing it. Other shows might force him to eventually show up at a gathering, regretting his decision to fly solo. Not The Mindy Project. This is who Danny is, and while he may want to be with Mindy, he is patient enough to wait for her to want to be with him, and he's not going to show up at some party he doesn't want to be at to speed things along. He kind of already does that with the dance club a few weeks ago, and so now he has learned his lesson and stays true to himself.

Of course, The Mindy Project doesn't abandon the friends-getting-together trope entirely. At the end of "Thanksgiving," they all send each other pictures with their camera phones. This shows that they do think of each other as family, and it will not be surprising if the main cast gathers together in some future holiday episode. Let's hope not, though, because if Mindy just sticks to the things about it that set it apart from the rest of the fodder out there, this could be a really good series.

The Mindy Project airs Tuesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

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