Be Kind Rewind: Kissing Jessica Stein.

"Stop saying you told me, you're a terrible liar, it's one of your best qualities."

Cast: Jennifer Westfeldt, Heather Juergensen and Scott Cohen. 

Release Date: April 21st, 2001. 

Rating on Rotten Tomatoes: 85% fresh rating. 

My Rating: 4.5 stars. 

Resume: Kissing Jessica Stein is an independent romantic comedy about a twenty-something New Yorker who's overwhelmed by her inability to find her perfect man. Spontaneously, she responds to a lesbian ad in a newspaper in an attempt to expand her horizons. 

Review: When it comes to romantic comedies, I think that I've pretty much seen it all. Kissing Jessica Stein is different because it's a same-sex romance, not only that but, the main character is a straight girl embarking in a lesbian relationship. It breaks all the rules of romantic comedies. The leads, Westfeldt and Juergensen, wrote the movie together. The writing is almost as good as the acting.

Jessica Stein is a neurotic, perfectionist, charming girl who is fed up with the men that are thrown her way. Stein is a typically lost twenty-something who's trying to find her way in the busiest city of the world. She's one of the most relatable romantic comedy character I've encountered. Mainly because she is trying to find her way in life, like many of us. She is trying new things and allowing herself to make mistakes. 

 

Helen Cooper, Jessica's love interest, is her polar opposite. She is a messy, cool, thirty-something art gallery worker. While Helen has multiple affairs with men, she is eager for a relationship with a woman. If Jessica is nervous and uncomfortable with dating a woman, Helen is more laid back about the situation. Their relationship might be a little cringe-worthy at times, but if you open your mind to the blurriness that can be friendship and love, as well as gay and straight, then you can really enjoy this movie.

Kissing Jessica Stein is a charming, savvy, humorous flick that I would recommend to any romantic comedy lover.