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Ben Stiller's indie coming of age drama and comedy Reality Bites (1994) is a down to Earth look about our expectations versus our reality for youth meeting adulthood. It features a hard hitting message about growing up and finding yourself and the people you care about in a hectic world. Helen Childress' script is phenomenally written. The grounded and realistic approach she takes in her writing feels so sincere. Her commentary about jobs, love, poverty, education, friendship, romance, AIDS, homosexuality, television, maturation, and happiness are profound and moving. The wit and humor in her script is also hilarious, but in a unique and fresh way. Her phrasing is so fun and unexpectedly random. Ben Stiller's direction is pretty impressive with a great long take of Winona Ryder walking out on him after he butchered her character's documentary to Stiller taking to the time to use still shots of characters interacting in a very real way. I love how innovative the edits are, while Stiller's direction keeps you invested in the characters and their feeling through his intimate style and close-up approach. Winona Ryder is outstanding as Lelaina Pierce. Her frustrated artistic inclinations and devastated career expectations are really relatable as is her conflicted romantic interests. Winona Ryder is a wonderful actress and captures the free spirit of youth, the passionate love of a genuine person, and the upset indignation of someone hurting. Her chemistry with Ethan Hawke is palpable and she works dramatic wonders on screen with him. Speaking of Ethan Hawke, his portrayal of Troy Dyer in Reality Bites is one of cinema's most genuine characters. Hawke cuts through his character's initial idiocy, cruelty, and nonchalance with a heavy dose of heartfelt acting. His comedic delivery is hilarious, but I adored Hawke's romantic and realistic approach to his dramatic moments alongside Winona Ryder. They certainly gave us one of cinema's greatest couples as they feel like any two teenagers that could actually exist. Ben Stiller is great as the stuffy, inane, producer that desperately wants love. His depiction of a man willing to bend over backwards for a woman, while still completely misses the point and her perspective feels so accurate. Stiller nails the self serving perspective of Stiller's character. I am really impressed Stiller acted so well, while simultaneously directing Reality Bites with such a sure and steady hand. I have to mention the endearing and touching supporting actress performance from Janeane Garofalo as Vickie Miner. Her hedonistic and cavalier ways give way to her afraid and lonely character's inner struggles. Her character is just trying to get by and that is all right. I really loved Steve Zahn in Reality Bites as Sammy Gray seeing as how he only gets a few lines in and a few faces, but they are all memorable, nuanced, and play the character with a realism I appreciated. Reality Bites is Ben Stiller's ode to the disenfranchised and I adored it.Read full review
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