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In the middle of Harmony and Me is a very telling line of dialogue. Harmony (Justin Rice) is struggling through a piano lesson, and his teacher (Jeremy Pollet) aptly sums up Harmony's playing style and personality: "You're entangled in your dedication to precision."

Indeed he is. A quintessential Austin indie, Harmony and Me -- available today on DVD and streaming through the movie's website -- is the story of the title character, a less-than-lovable loser who can't let go of his ex-girlfriend, Jessica (Kristen Tucker). His obsession with her has gone from merely pathetic to thoroughly annoying, as he subjects his family, friends, co-workers and anyone else who will listen to his hopeless pining and incessant analyses of the relationship. Despite everyone's gentle suggestions to get over it already, Harmony isn't about to move on.

Then again, Harmony's fixation on the lovely Jessica is may be understandable (albeit completely irritating...

The 16th annual Austin Film Festival opened with a true screenwriting gem, Serious Moonlight. Penned by the late Adrienne Shelley around the same time she created Waitress – Shelley was murdered shortly after wrapping Waitress, before she had the opportunity to direct Serious Moonlight. I loved Waitress, and have been a fan of Adrienne Shelley since seeing her act in Hal Hartley’s The Unbelievable Truth and Trust. Serious Moonlight | Review "...the script is chock-full of clever Hitchcockian twists along with a impeccably strong (and mysterious) conclusion. Serious Moonlight is very conservatively directed by first-timer Cheryl Hines (who acted in Waitress with Shelley)." ____________________________________________________ I have long been curious about C.D. Payne’s 1993 epistolary novel Youth in Revolt: The Journals of Nick Twisp, and unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to read it prior to the Aff screening of Miguel Arteta’s film. Nonetheless, into the Paramount I went… I must...

Director: Bob Byington Writer(s): Bob Byington Starring: Justin Rice, Kevin Corrigan, Pat Healy, Kristen Tucker, Alex Karpovsky, Allison Latta, Nick Offerman Harmony (Justin Rice) is not recovering very well from being dumped by Jessica (Kristen Tucker). We find him misanthropically moping through life, hating his job and constantly arguing with his family. Even piano lessons (with an unnamed character played by Jeremy Pollet) can’t clear the foggy haze from around Harmony. This is probably because Harmony is surrounded by depressed and/or mean-spirited personalities, from his friends Mike (Alex Karpovsky) and Carlos (Kevin Corrigan) to his brothers Jim (Bob Byington) and Wes (Keith Poulson). As you can imagine from the premise, there isn’t much happiness to be found within Harmony and Me; in fact, I cannot remember one pleasant or uplifting character in Harmony and Me. Harmony and Me features occasional glimpses of brilliant dialogue, but...

A great new director with a great and laid back saga that will be too laid back for some but well worth the watching Emerging writer/director Bob Byington hits the ground running, or is the expression hits the ground slacking with this ultra laid back and ultra low budget comedy of heartbreak, acceptance and near redemption. Justin Rice plays the character named Harmony, which is pretty funny all by itself considering he is so completely out of harmony with his life. Harmony.s problems stem from his break-up with his girl friend, the extremely attractive and contrastingly normal Jessica, played by Kristen Tucker (also a producer for the film). Only they don.t stem completely from the breakup with his girlfriend. No...

With the Venice Film Festival having just concluded and Toronto now underway, the award season's wheels begin to roll with big name players, both indie and arthouse, making a showing, with Steven Soderbergh and Jennifer Aniston keeping things light at the multiplex.

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"35 Shots of Rum"

While Claire Denis' latest film, "White Material," is in the midst of a prestigious festival run that will take in Venice, Toronto and soon London, fans of the French filmmaker's work can enjoy this delicate domestic portrayal of tenderness and devotion from last year that begins a small theatrical run here in New York. Set in a nondescript Parisian neighborhood, Denis' film casually unfolds the dynamic of unspoken trust and mutual support played out between a stoic widower Lionel (Alex Descas), his daughter Joséphine (Mati Diop), and the...