Rhythm is a Dancer
Rating: 3/5
By: Nathaniel Simpson
Screened at Austin Film Festival
There are thousands of kids across America that don't know both of their biological parents. Many of them are products of artificial insemination, where the mother chooses the sperm from a variety of donors. However, as the kid starts to get older and enter into the world of adulthood, it presents the questions of who that other parent is and how similar are they to their paternal relative. That is the case of filmmaker Lauren Caster, who found herself wanting to know who her "bio-dad" is. Fast forward years later and her bio-dad has helped produce her newest film, Rhythm is a Dancer, which I went to the world premiere of at the Austin Film Festival last week. Caster, who wrote, directed, and stars in the film, crafts a beautifully moving story about finding not only your long-lost parent, but also finding yourself while approaching your 30s. While I think the movie does have the right amount of heart and has some moving moments that work, the story as a whole needs more fine-tuning as it does feel a little long and redundant after a while; Caster adds in too many elements here that don't complement each other all at once.
Caster plays Ro, a young woman who is not sure where to go in life. When things don't really work out for her dance career in New York, she decides to head back to LA for the summer, staying and working with her mother (Amy Aquino). She decides to get a job at a senior living facility, helping the elderly people with arts and crafts and trying to create memories for them that they won't forget. However, she doesn't know if that is fulfilling enough for her, and decides to continue to pursue her bio-dad (Tate Donovan), wondering what her life would have been like if her father was in her life.
Without a doubt, I love the message behind this story. Caster takes this semi-autobiographical character of Ro, and really starts to explore her psyche and how she feels about her life at the end of her 20s. How Caster writes this story and this characters feels incredibly personal, and you can feel the pain and triumphs that Caster went through in this character. I adore her character's arc in the sense of seeing her go through ups and downs, but always trying to get back up again, especially when it is hard. Because of writing and directing this story and character, Caster perfectly fits into this role. Her character is fun and is a great protagonist, one that definitely has her faults but doesn't let them define her. Caster is easily the best thing about this entire picture in terms of performance, and this is definitely a major feat she should be proud of.
I do want to point out Donovan's and Aquino's roles as the biological parents because I think they are great in their own right. We have two veteran actors here stepping into this small, indie film and they simply do a great job of grounding themselves into these roles. For both performances, you can tell that the story and the characters truly mean a lot to them, and they both give it their all from beginning to end. Donovan is great as the dad who wants to get to know his daughter, and it is so nice seeing this daughter finally get to connect with her father after looking for him for so many years. At the same time, Aquino gives a fantastic performance as the mom, a middle-aged lesbian woman who tried her hardest to raise her daughter on her own. They both stand-out here and steal the show in every scene they are in. The elderly characters in the senior home are tons of fun as well, and I appreciate how Caster utilizes them as good, old-fashioned comedic relief.
However, I do think the story and the pacing needs a little polishing. This picture starts to feel quite long after a while. sort of muddling through to get to the desired climax and resolution that Caster wanted for her story. While it isn't boring in the slightest as Caster demonstrates her ability to write these characters and dialogue, it does lack a sense of urgency, leaving the viewer feeling sort of antsy while getting through the second half of this film. At the same time, there are the same fights we see a couple of times in this movie, and, in a way, she sort of abandons the father character after a major misstep by our lead character takes place. The only resolution is towards the end, when I wish we had gotten a little more of the father-daughter chemistry. Perhaps Caster could have trimmed down some of the story or characters, it could have been a tighter and more enjoyable film towards the latter half.
Caster produced, wrote, directed, and starred in this new indie film, and was able to get her world premiere at the Austin Film Festival, a major feat for writers already. She has a lot to be proud of for this film, and this is easily the most personal film I saw during my time at the Festival. While she does have more to learn in the art of filmmaking, and there is no doubt in my mind she will really hone her skills in future projects, I think this is a great, solid effort that provides a thematically-rich, heartfelt story that will resonate with a lot of people.
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