A hard to find DIY gem

Six thirtysomething friends find out more about each other than they expected or wanted to know in this semi-improvised drama. Wes (Michael Traynor) is about to turn 30, and his live-in girlfriend, Sophie (Kellee Stewart), decides that a surprise birthday party is in order. Once the big day arrives, Wes would rather fool around with Sophie than entertain guests, but he politely goes along with the big party as their friends arrive, including tightly wound architect Lenny (Tif Luckenbill); his nervous girlfriend, Allie (Amy Redford); self-styled ladies' man Dylan (David Robinette); and his latest girlfriend, Naima (Marjan Neshat), an Iranian whom he recently met on a train and who doesn't happen to speak English. After a few cocktails, conversation between the guests becomes looser, until some secrets are unexpectedly revealed and tempers between the friends begin to fray.

Cry Funny Happy was the first directorial effort from Sam Neave, who was previously best known for his work as an editor.

Before it got damaged, I used own this DVD for a few years. I cant even remember how I came across it; I believe it was when I stumbled on the DVD for another kick-ass DIY film called Four Dead Batteries (another tough to find DIY DV feature), that like Cry Funny Happy, made its way around the festival circuit between the years 2003 and 2005 to rave reviews and praise. I watched this film again with my friend director Brian Ackley over the Christmas break, and turned him on to it as well. We both think it was fantastic.

Its a mystery why this film was never included in the list of some of DIY's most influencial films, especially when one considers these facts:

* the film was made around the same time as Andrew Bujalski's Mutual Appreciation, which is credited as further establishing this new genre of improvisational feature films.

* Cry Funny Happy, unlike Mutual Appreciation, was actually accepted into Sundance, and included a quote of support from Robert Redford himself.

I can only guess that the film is not mentioned as a "mumblecore" film because the charaacters are in fact in their early 30s, and the fact that they don't mumble at all. They are rather articulate, and are living their lives and working in their careers while maintaining somewhat "stable," albeit troubled, relationships.

Nonetheless, if you are into DIY DV features made entirely in NYC, and you like improvisation, you will find great performances and nuances in the characters. You can find the film for purchase where I found it - on www.Amazon.com

Here is a scene from the film: