Dorfman in Love

source: Dorfman in Love

I found this movie to be very charming. Yes, the script has a bit of a textbook rom-com format. But the performances from the cast elevate the film. Sara Rue and Haaz Sleiman light up the screen when present. I loved seeing Elliott Gould here as well. And Catherine Hicks can do no wrong. The cast is impressive. For whatever reason, I found myself swept up in the story and performances. If you love a good rom-com, you should definitely check out Dorfman in Love.

This is a seemingly simple cliche story but actually has so much heart and soul! With great performances and chemistry. With interesting real feel of setting and culture of characters. Well worth the watch and love and story stays with you!

When Deb Dorfman (Sara Rue) house sits for a friend, her life changes forever. Her dad (Elliot Gould) has tried setting her up, but it doesn't seem to ever work out. Her married brother is a mess, and drags her into it. And now she has to house sit for a friend's cat. And it hates her. Will Deb ever get her own life figured out? Maybe she and her new next door neighbor can help each other. It's fun. Kind of feels like this was someone's own life story. Directed by Brad Leong, who has directed four films to date.... two of those were short films. Story by Wendy Kout,who was also a writer on mork and mindy in the 1980s. That's awesome! Blast from the past.

So overall I thought it was pretty good- there were a few spots I could have done without (unnecessary bondage, reference to * etc), but thought the overall the characters did pretty good, were like able (or purposefully unlikeable), good chemistry between too main characters, and good scenery. Other then the bondage, it wasn't too objectionable although I really wanted to smack the brother (although pretty sure that was the point.) Not bad for light hearted, (mostly) feel good movie.

This is a formulaic rom-com, but that's not a bad thing if they get the formula right. You'll pretty much know what's going to happen from the first scene, right down to the way it's all going to end, but like I said, they do it well. Sara Rue in the lead role does the best job of playing an actual woman I've seen in a long time. No tired Hollywood "supermodel in glasses playing homely" stuff. Rue is beautiful from the first shot, but you have to, like, look, to see that. You gotta appreciate Rue's performance; playing real is difficult. (Which I guess is why we usually get fake.) I'll avoid spoilers here, but let's just say that whatever transformations may or may not take place are all about framing beauty that's standing in front of you, rather than painting over anything. (Just go with it; you'll get the allusion when you've seen the movie.) This movie isn't going to set the world on fire, but it's a nice evening in with a well-played story. I recommend it.

I can't say how many times i wanted to quit watching this movie because of elliot gould ... he's a lousy actor and worse comedian ... the best work he ever did was mash which i saw just before i left for vietnam in 1970 ... now he's just dust on whatever film he's in ... sara rue was great and the sole reason i kept watching

As a love letter to modern L.A. it does a great job, though with less nuance than, say, L.A. Story. Sara Rue is likable in the eponymous role, and she grows quite a lot in the film though rather more quickly than is credible and in a fairly predictable way. Her take on the "I have no filter" character is convincing, but the character itself is a little hackneyed. Her costar Haz Sleiman (Cookie) is very very good. The secondary characters are mainly OK though generally not believable as humans. Unfortunately, Elliott Gould -- one of my very favorite actors - gives what has to be the worst performance of his career. His dialogue is full of clichés about old Jewish men of at least half-a-generation above him, the lines coming out of his mouth do not fit him at all, and he is obviously aware of this as he delivers them. As he has by far the strongest presence of any actor in the movie he dominates every scene in which he appears, and the movie suffers as a result. From the description this could have just been simple Hallmark fare, but it has more to offer than that. It is worth watching if you're looking for an uncomplicated, reasonably funny urban romance, and willing to overlook the main plot line and some of the worst dialogue excesses while keeping an eye out for the great visuals and some of the genuinely funny interactions between Rue and minor characters like Bubba Ganter, Sonya Eddy and the wonderful Tonita Castro.

Loved Dorfman for its sincerity, authenticity, humor and Downtown LA. Expertly written and brilliantly acted by Wendy Kout, Elliot Gould and Sara Rue. While the Jewish humor will be appreciated by the tribe it's not overbearing and everybody will be laughing. The plot feels personal to the writer/creator yet repeatable to common every day struggles of the "average" person. Seeing E. Gould support this is indie flick is a wonderful pleasant surprise adding credibility to the film's premise and ambitions. Absolutely recommend a great for date night!

"Dorfman in Love" seems to have been a lost movie. In the golden age of IMDb - when the message boards were still available - I remember people asking where and when and how they could watch it. Naturally, this made us all interested to see it. We shouldn't have bothered. It's not just that every character in the movie is one-dimensional and painted in broad brush strokes with character arcs you can see coming from the first time they are on screen. It's also the fact that the movie totally runs out of steam toward the end and becomes hopelessly boring. The main character is an over-worked accountant who looks after her widower dad and is overworked by her spoilt brother. She is in love with the studly, jet-setting reporter she works with, but he seems to mostly use her (notice a theme?) for pep talks when he feels low. She meets a handsome artist, but is unreceptive to him at first... The conclusion is so forced it almost seems like a slap in the face. The stage is set for our protagonist to choose between her photographer or the artist next door. This would be a difficult decision, if the photographer didn't start acting like a jerk out of nowhere at the zero hour, making it not really a decision at all. And then we have the relationship between father and daughter. Elliott Gould spouts Yiddish constantly throughout this movie. He doesn't speak without using terms like "tauches", "fagela", "mensch". Were they trying to make sure it would get a spot in Jewish film festivals? Anyway, he experiences a similarly unbelievable arc when he realises, out of nowhere, he has spoilt his son and neglected his daughter. I say these changes are "out of nowhere", which they are if you try to take the movie seriously as something that is trying to be realistic. In fact, you can see them all coming simply because you are so well-versed in clichés. "Dorfman in Love" is one of those movies that relies on our familiarity with the clichés it uses to tell its story. Take those clichés away, it would be a dead zone. You'd be angry, instead of bored and irritated.