Mistress America * * * *

The lead character in Mistress America is not really who this film is about. It’s about the person who meets the lead character.  

Tracy is a student at a college in New York.  Her mother announces she is remarrying. She divorced Tracy’s father because he became all-religious and turned to Catholicism apparently (we don’t actually meet him).  

Tracy’s mother tells Tracy she really should meet up with Brooke who is the daughter of the man she intends to marry.  Brooke too lives in New York.  Tracy is not much interested. But after finding herself friendless because her story has been rejected by an elite writers group and her boyfriend has taken up with another girl, Tracy decides to give Brooke a call.  

At thirty Brooke is twelve years older than Tracy, but the two immediately hit it off and are thrilled that they are actually going to become “sisters”.

Brooke is full of confidence, opinion and ambition. Among her many plans is one to start a restaurant. “Can I be  a waitress?” Tracy hopefully asks, ignoring the fact that Brooke ignores the question. And that pretty well is indicative of many of the conversations in this funny, very clever, and highly entertaining film.

Everyone talks but few people listen. The College tutorial scenes are hilarious.

To raise the money for her restaurant Brooke decides to give a surprise visit to an old friend who Brooke claims “stole” one of her many money-making brilliant ideas (along with her cats) and now lives with a wealthy husband in Connecticut.  
It’s payback time.  

So Tracy and Brooke set out with Tracy's ex boyfriend (he is the only one with a car) and his new girlfriend who won’t let him out of her sight in case he cheats.

This is the third Noah Baumbach film I have seen, after The Squid and the Whale and Frances Ha, and I enjoyed this even more than the previous two.

He’s got better with each film  - and a damn sight funnier too. There are a lot of laughs in this film; both with, and at, the very quirky characters he and his writing partner have developed. (His partner incidentally is Greta Gerwig who plays Brooke).

There Is also a lot of wisdom to be appreciated among the many laughs.