Drawn into a menacing underground world of the New Orleans elite while searching for her missing sister, Muriel (Shalom Harlow), Amelia (Liane Balaban) is aided in her investigation by ex-CIA agent Bill (Clarence Williams III) in this effort from Nadja director Michael Almereyda. Soon discovering mysterious webcam footage on Muriel's laptop computer that will seemingly aid them in finding Amelia's sister, the duo is confronted with shifting identities in a scene where no one is quite who they
appear to be on the surface. An obscure and disturbing study in the nature of avatars in the age of technological isolation, Almereyda's haunting drama soon leads Amelia and Bill into a complex web buried deep in the underground of a mysterious and sometimes menacing city. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
This is a droll, laid-back film noir steeped in Crescent City atmosphere and music that culminates in the colliding worlds of genuine and virtual reality.
Michael Almereyda's futuristic mystery isn't a complete misfire, but it does leave you with the same baffled blankness that suffuses his isolated, techno-dependent characters.
"Happy Here and Now" starts out with Amelia(Liane Balaban) venturing to New Orleans to look for her missing sister, Muriel.(At the same time, a firefighter is agonizing over the loss of a fellow firefighter.) Bill(Clarence Williams III), a former CIA Agent, now cab driver, is helping with the search and uncovers a
connection to an Eddie Mars who Muriel was communicating via the internet. (And what all of this has to do with Nikola Tesla, Blaise Pascal and the price of 7-Up in New Orleans, I have no idea.) "Happy Here and Now" begins well and ends up being totally incoherent. Basically the movie wants to be a commentary about not being able to commuicate with our fellow human beings, thus resorting to the company of computers instead. But if you want to chat with people on the internet all day long, be my guest.
December 19, 2005
Walter M.
Super Reviewer
Started out promising with some interesting character studies & great shots of the real New Orleans pre-Katrina, but not much of a story. Just as I became interested in the characters, it ended. See Ally Sheedy in HIGH ART for her best performance yet.
No quotes approved yet for Happy Here and Now. Logged in users can submit quotes.
Submit a Quote from 'Happy Here and Now'
A quote can be a single line from one character or a memorable dialog between several characters. Please make your quotes accurate. Quotes will be submitted for approval by the RT staff.
Example:
Luke: Alright. I'll give it a try. Yoda: No. Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Top Critic
