Reno Rangan Not to be confused with Venice in the title as the Europe's own Venice. It's a place in Los Agenles, USA. I don't know it is to be called a B movie or an indie, but definitely a decent drama with a decent storyline and cast. Indeed, it was about Alex, a middle age working and married woman with a young son. Her husband who takes care of the household, is now deserted them. So in her busy working life, Alex comes to realise the family bonding, particularly with her son. Then there's her dad and sister who are a troublemaker than any useful. So her life with a new perspective begins, like a self-discovery.This is a directional debut for a supporting actor. He should be directing more films. I really liked it. It was simple and obviously realistic. This thing happens in the real world. So all I felt it was a reflection of someone's real life on the screen. Well written and directed. I liked the cast too. Mary Elizabeth was very good and so the rest of them. This is not an unexpected film, but with its limits it had narrated a fine story. The ratings are not fair. It's surely worth a watch and better than an average. I think only the adult would recognise it from its contents with similar experiences of their own lives.7/10

Ironically Unimpressed Simple, human-centred writing, honest depictions of the average Janes and Joes, and a Don Johnson coming out of nowhere to tug at my heart strings.A story into which I could easily place myself, not because of any personal drama of the kind, but simply on account of the next-door familiarity of the characters and their most usual, run- of-the-mill predicaments.This, without once finding it lacking in pace or boring; a true feat given my short attention span and my intolerance to wasting time. All in all, thank you for this unexpected little gem, Mr. Messina.

Argemaluco For his debut as a director, actor Chris Messina made Alex of Venice, an interesting but not totally satisfactory drama which takes advantage of its main actress' big talent, even though she might have deserved more substantial material to work with. Don't misunderstand me... Alex of Venice is a competent drama with excellent performances and a realistic story which deals with difficult and emotive topics without employing Hollywood's false sentimentality. Messina's direction is fluid and efficient, lacking of any affectations and with a good eye to create an urban/bohemian atmosphere reflecting the contrasts of the Venice neighborhood in Los Ángeles. The problem/pro of the film is letting the story be developed through the main character's silences, as well as her subtle changes of expression. Needless to say, Alex of Venice counts with a tremendously expressive actress who fully dominates her craft in that role; but I think co-screenwriters Jessica Goldberg, Katie Nehra and Justin Shelton relied too much on Mary Elizabeth Winstead's talent, and they omitted important pieces of the narrative puzzle, making the movie feel... I don't know... incomplete and premature. The main thing which makes Alex of Venice worthy of a moderate recommendation is the perfect performances, not only Winstead's, but also the ones from Don Johnson, Skylar Gaertner and Julianna Guill. In conclusion, I think Alex of Venice represents a decent debut from Messina as a director which counts with a cast whose brilliant work is helpful to overcome the limitations of the screenplay to some point. I think Alex of Venice should have gone farther in the dramatic aspect, emphasizing the main character's evolution instead of getting distracted with peripheral events which obliquely contribute to the story, but without deepening enough on the main character's experiences.

Dunham16 Chris Messina's directorial debut is an insightful look at thirty somethings at the level of of crisis Checkhov penned in his final play, THE CHERRY ORCHARD. The tight ensemble cast is led by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Don Johnson, Katie Nera and Skylar Gartner, Messina giving himself principal cast status without much on screen time. Winstead plays a thirty something environmental lawyer prosecuting a lawsuit which many viewers of the film get the impression has nowhere to go. Her dysfunctional family includes a father losing it trying to get a part in a production of THE CHERRY ORCHARD, a ditzy sister who tries to help but makes things worse, an unhappy husband who leaves without explanation or or warning and a ten year old son who at first feels crushed but eventually figures out all of us go through crises in our lives and the stronger we are to surmount them the better our lives will become. Odd philosophical truth to assign a ten year old character but always fascinating even the eighty or so minutes between opening and final credits and the often single camera editing working well.