Critic wrangle: "In Search of a Midnight Kiss."

2008-08-01 20:00:01

It's been over a year since Alex Holdridge's "In Search of a Midnight Kiss" premiered at Tribeca 2007, in which time his "misanthrope seeks misanthrope" blind date romance has rounded the film festival bases from Edinburgh to Sarajevo to Mill Valley to Austin to Thessaloniki. Now in theaters, it's attracting some interestingly considered, if mixed, reviews (and is the lone focus of the New Yorker's film column this week), with many calling out its portrayal of Los Angeles. Take Scott Foundas at the Village Voice, who leads with "Did Los Angeles sign with a new agent?" He finds that "Holdridge's film oscillates wildly between low-key romantic comedy and antic slapstick and doesn't always hit the mark, but it has charm to burn, as well as a welcome eye for the timeless in a rapidly changing metropolis." Andrew O'Hehir at Salon writes that the film "has a gutter purity that makes...

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