Fresh out of college and stuck at his New Jersey home without a clear path forward, 22-year-old Andrew begins working as a party starter for bar/bat mitzvahs—where he strikes up a unique friendship with a young mom and her teenage daughter.
Cooper Raiff
Andrew
Dakota Johnson
Domino
Vanessa Burghardt
Lola
Evan Assante
David
Leslie Mann
Lisa
Raúl Castillo
Joseph
Odeya Rush
Macy
Brad Garrett
Greg
Javien Mercado
Andrew (12)
Amara Pedroso
Maya
Brooklyn Ramirez
Margaret
Kelly O'Sullivan
Bella
Chris Newman
Andrew's Dad
John Paul Hurley
Bartender
Davina Reid
Cath
Lisa Velten Smith
Mrs. Ray
Corrie Danieley
Jacob's Mom
Eamonn McElfresh
Little Prick
Mike Dennis
Mr. Prick
Alison Weisgall
Mrs. Prick
Jonathan Visser
Mr. Airbrush
Tommy Lafitte
Mr. Ron
Jonathan Berry
DJ Rich
Colton Osorio
Rodrigo
Director, Screenplay
Cooper Raiff
June 18, 2022
7
Cooper Raiff did just about everything on this quickly paced and rather touching comedy drama. He plays the 22-year old "Andrew", whom we first meet as a young boy who has a crush on a party starter. Dejected after his inevitable rejection, we skip on a few years to when he is using his considerable social skills to get folks up and dancing at the seemingly never ending series of bar/bat mitzvah's in his town. It's at one such gathering that he meets "Domino" (Dakota Johnson) and her autistic daughter "Lola" (a strong performance from Vanessa Burghardt). The challenge is to get the shy young girl to dance and the result is a sitter job and a relationship, of sorts, with her mother - already engaged to the frequently out of town "Joseph" (Raúl Castillo). What now ensues is a gently comedic, but quite potent story that offers the young and charismatic "Andrew" (he reminded me a lot of Jack Whitehall!) with an opportunity to shine. It's about love, yes, but it's about hope and managing expectations too; with this young man, like so many of us at that age, trying to start out in life on as sure a footing as he can. It's not all a barrel of laughs - there is plenty of emotional turmoil for him, "Domino", his mother (Leslie Mann) and for his coming-of-age brother "David" (Evan Assante) and it illustrates also quite effectively just how cruel youngsters can be to each other; and how blind loyalty from their parents doesn't help (though in this film, there are quite entertaining side-effects!). There is chemistry here between the confident Raiff and both Johnson and Burghardt, the soundtrack gets your toes tapping and the conclusion offers a reality that I rather appreciated. It's good, this.