101 Ways (the Things a Girl Will Do to Keep Her Volvo)

If calling a film "light" and "refreshing" smacks somewhat of a soda pop commercial, it is for fairly good reason. "101 Ways" is consistently humorous, without reaching belly-aching proportions. When it ventures away from quick quips and fast puns, it never becomes offensive. In a nutshell, it is satisfying and well-worth the viewing, but not always the most substantive choice.

It is, after all, a movie about a girl's quest for romance and a career -- pretty standard fodder for many romantic comedies. Without love and without a job, Watson (played very adeptly by Wendy Hoopes) must find a way to make the payments on her beloved Volvo. But "101 Ways" does turn the genre on its head, narrowing the focus of Watson's love life to a supermarket check-out clerk, and (as the title implies) keeping her material hopes limited to the Swedish import sedan.

(The potentially confusing title is a reference to those pesky flyers seen all over college dorms, entitled "101 Ways to Make Love Without Having Sex." In this case, Watson seems to find that she encounters "101 Ways to Get F***ed Without Having Sex," which is pretty much the running joke of the entire movie.)

It is this balance of the absurd -- blending a healthy dose of paradox in a normally predictable setting -- that gives "101 Ways" its edge. The airline captain Dirk (Gabriel Macht), who reminds us that airline captains are long overdue for a good lampooning, is an especially welcome example of this. But Connecticut suburbs, brand new Volvos, and gargantuan supermarkets can only take a movie so far before dysfunctions on a Todd Solondz-type level can push it further.

I saw this film at a screening in Detroit with my full on mid-west burb-in-laws who liked it as much as me. 101 Ways is a fresh, witty film that specifically pokes fun at suburban life while playfully depicting Watson's painful journey. The youthful humor of the film clearly trancends age and demographics.

My favorite aspect of the film was the way a true variety of relationships are portrayed and how those relationships ultimately lead Watson down her road of self-discovery. (If you're open to them, it is usually the people around you that lead you to life's significant insights--ones that you might never have gotten to on your own.)

Why can't all coming-of-age films be like this?

"101 Ways" is a brilliant, quirky, comic gem of a film. At first, you may not identify with the protagonist, Watson Gowan, who drives an expensive new Volvo and has moved to Connecticut to pursue her creative writing -- but it quickly turns out that Watson has the same problems as most of us: finding a job that doesn't suck, paying the bills, and (of course) the pursuit of True Love. The film's slice-of-suburban-life narrative is punctuated by a hilarious use of monologue, in which the various characters get to make wry or trenchant observations about their side of the story -- directly to the audience of the film. Woven into this story are a couple of priceless fantasy sequences that never fail to deliver belly laughs, as well as a few cathartic moments of well-acted pathos that throw the comedy into sharp relief. It's obvious the actors had a lot of fun with this offbeat material, and they did a terrific job -- all the characters in Watson's life come across as utterly funny, authentic, and recognizable -- even if you have never been to Connecticut and have never driven a Volvo. Kudos to the director for making suburbia look so appealing.

"101 Ways..." manages to be witty without being glib. It manages to be lighthearted without being lightweight. Even more impressively, it manages to avoid hackneyed romantic comedy clichés while being hysterically funny... thus making this a rare gem indeed.

"101 Ways..." is the perfect movie for those who can handle the shock that there's more to romantic comedies than Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Love's long and winding road has more speed bumps than E-Z Passes.

What makes "101 Ways..." special is that it's a story of a small town girl with big city dreams-or is it a big city girl with small town dreams-trust me-the lead's a girl (Watson) and there is a dream sequence (the hottest supermarket checkout you'll likely see). Where was I? What makes this movie special are all the unique characters Watson comes across as she tries to find Zen in love, job, and car ownership.

From the over protective mother to a fatherly police officer. From a gigolo pilot and a lovelorn cop. From a crappy job to even crappier jobs. Watson encounters a cast of characters-some so special they could even warrant their own film-and quirky situations that she struggles through in funny and surprising ways.

One last note. Kudos to the filmmaker for a making an independent film that doesn't take place in NYC or LA and doesn't involve guns. This film is a refreshing change of pace.

Being from the area where this film was shot, it was even more entertaining for me to watch this great comedy and hear people shouting out "Look, it's Wentworth's" and the like. However, it's at the Supermarket checkout counter that this film really shines, with highly memorable scenes that had me laughing out loud. Glenn Fitzgerald plays a fine checkout clerk, and Catherine Mueller is spot on as a somewhat sulky bagger who avoids eye contact. Wendy Hoopes as the main angst-ridden gal who has left the big city in search of a better life will appeal to all younger adults who have been in a similar situation, but it's in the incidental character 'cameos' that you feel this film is special. Occasional throw-away lines show up that are absolutely hysterical and can almost pass you by so pay attention.

I look forward to seeing something else soon from the same director/writer.