Plot
A lonely college freshman's life is turned upside down by her impetuous, adventurous soon-to-be stepsister.
Release Year: 2015
Rating: 7.1/10 (172 voted)
Critic's Score: 80/100
Director: Noah Baumbach
Stars: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke, Seth Barrish
Storyline
Tracy, a lonely college freshman in New York, is rescued from her solitude by her soon-to-be stepsister Brooke, an adventurous gal about town who entangles her in alluringly mad schemes. Mistress America is a comedy about dream-chasing, score-settling, makeshift families, and cat-stealing.
Writers: Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig
Cast: Seth Barrish -
Juliet Brett -
Andrea Chen -
Bitchy College Girl
Michael Chernus -
Cindy Cheung -
Shana Dowdeswell -
Joel Marsh Garland -
Actor
Greta Gerwig -
Brooke
Charlie Gillette -
Carey
Rebecca Henderson -
Jasmine Cephas Jones -
Lola Kirke -
Tracy
Heather Lind -
Morgan Lynch -
College Student
Shoba Narayanan -
Student
Country: USA
Language: English
Release Date: 14 August 2015
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
Lola Kirke's character attends Columbia University. See more »
Quotes:
User Review
Author:
Rating: 8/10
Taking place in New York City about now, "Mistress America" focuses on
the life of Tracy who is a freshman in college. She aspires to be a
writer—easy to tell because she's aloof, detached, alone, and looking
for friends. Her mom's getting remarried so Tracy has an older
sister-to-be in Brooke, one of those cinematic forces of nature like a
young Katherine Hepburn, perhaps. Brooke takes Tracy into her life of
late-night concert performances, high-output spinning, fashion,
finance, clandestine apartments, absent lovers, and a nascent
restaurant business. In many ways, this is a buddy movie as Tracy
learns fierce independence from Brooke, who she greatly admires.
Like all buddy movies, Tracy's and Brooke's relationship has ups and
downs, complicated by the literary understory. Then the whirlwind pace
goes surreal as the New Yorkers head to Greenwich, Connecticut in
search of—something. We think it's one thing but it's not. I guess
Greenwich, seat of the uber wealthy in the US financial arena, is
actually a surreal place.
This is an intensely witty movie with a very chewy script handled ably
by the very smart cast. Many call "Mistress America" a comedy but funny
is clearly not this movie's main goal. To call it a "screwball comedy"
is to not properly describe its intellect. The movie is saying
something about envying the lives of others, which most of us do to one
extent or another. It's a thoughtful movie, and it will be
uncomfortable for some to watch if you, like Tracy, are not centered
within your own mind and body. And after all, who is?
We saw this movie thanks to the San Jose Camera Cinema Club.
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