neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Thirteen Conversations About One Thing
	Jill Sprecher Matthew McConaughey, John Turturro, Clea DuVall, Alan Arkin, Amy Irving 2001		As seen in her tidy, intuitive debut feature "Clockwatchers," director Jill Sprecher has an affinity for the tensions and tedium of office life. But the relationship between a maladjusted manager and his contented employee is just one story line in her dexterous second film, "Thirteen Conversations About One Thing." There may be 13 conversations in the film; there's surely more than "one thing" afoot. It could be the nature and the pursuit of happiness or the vagaries of fortune and coincidence, since a lottery ticket and a car accident figure into the scenario. Other issues arise, as the lives of various people — an attorney (Matthew McConaughey), a teacher (John Turturro), a house cleaner (Clea DuVall), the aforementioned office manager (Alan Arkin), etc. — intersect in New York City. Comparisons to interlocked ensemble dramas such as "Magnolia," "Pulp Fiction" and "Amores Perros" are flattering and fitting. It's thought-provoking and vitalized by its grab-bag of able actors including Amy Irving.