Comet

Writer-director Sam Esmail's feature debut is definitely ambitious: non-linear, overly talky, and narrowly focused on two characters, both of whom are familiar but not-quite-A-list actors. Long and Rossum commit to their roles, but even a serious romance demands that audiences invest in the couple, and it's hard to when most of the time viewers will want them to just stop talking. Their constant bickering and bantering would be better served by humor and wit than sarcasm and condescension. The romance also lacks chemistry; for all the kissing, there's very little heat between the actors.

Although Esmail's script could've used a better editor, he shows promise with his visuals and the performances he elicited from his stars, who both helped produce the indie film. Perhaps this hipster love story will fare better with millennial audiences in their late teens and early twenties, but parents may have a hard time suppressing eye rolls as egotistical Dell rants on and on about virtually everything (although it all boils down to the stupidity of others) and Kim can't decide what she wants from the relationship. For a far better unconventional romance, see (500) Days of Summer.