This little indie movie, exquisitely filmed in black-and-white
digital by Robert Murphy (who also has a small part as a needy, violent
hick), is notable primarily for its attempt to see Los Angeles from a
pedestrian’s point of view. The climax of the movie is a
Craigslist-orchestrated blind date on New Year’s Eve, and for that
magical stretch of time, as the actors wander a few shabby blocks
downtown and descend into a piddling subway station, In Search of a
Midnight Kiss oozes charm. Unfortunately, the theme of the
film—the way the best memories result from fleeting
pleasures—requires that the New Year’s lovers be fundamentally
unsuited to each other. Since the guy is the protagonist, that means
the girl is completely obnoxious and only kind of hot.
Wilson (Scoot McNairy) is an aspiring screenwriter and professional
loafer from Texas who crashes his car immediately upon arriving in L.A.
Poor and more or less housebound, he spends his days smoking pot and
fantasizing about his roommate’s girlfriend. The movie opens with a
brutally hilarious incident involving the girlfriend, and the funny
stuff continues anytime the roommate (Brian Matthew McGuire) is on
screen. But Wilson doesn’t want to hang out with his roommate over New
Year’s, so after some urging, he goes online to hunt for a date.
He seems satisfied with his find, but viewers may be less forgiving.
A control freak stuck in an at least marginally abusive relationship,
fellow Texan Vivian (Sara Simmonds) bosses Wilson around and offers
very little in return. There’s some nonsense about her being an
artist—she takes pathetic photographs of orphaned shoes—but
basically, you want Wilson to shake her off like the bad hometown
nostalgia trip she clearly is.
