neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Kissing Jessica Stein
	Charles Herman-Wurmfeld Jennifer Westfeldt, Heather Juergensen, Scott Cohen, Tovah Feldshuh 2001		See "Kissing Jessica Stein," and you'll learn how a big budget is unnecessary to the success of a personality-driven romantic comedy. With its unmistakable New York setting and its urban singles looking for love, it's a little Burns and Allen. (Edward and Woody, that is.) The spin here is a sexual-preference tango, as two frustrated hetero career women, played by the film's co-screenwriters Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen, meet via a personals ad and give lesbianism a chance. Newspaper copy editor Jessica (Westfeldt) is striking out at the dating game. Even worse, her boss (Scott Cohen) is her ex-boyfriend and a jerk, and Mom (Tovah Feldshuh) is pushing her to find a nice man and settle down. Downtown, art-gallery maven Helen (Juergensen) is getting all the phallus she can ride, and she's bored. On a whim, Jessica answers Helen's ad, and they click. But Jessica is a neurotic mess. Despite waffling about its heroines' gender choices, this is a welcome, appealing break from Hollywood tripe.