Newly Single (2017)

American filmmaker Adam Christian Clark directs and stars in this jet-black comedy centered around the LA dating scene, as a self-obsessed filmmaker who finds himself on the market once again. The film is darkly funny and sometimes brutal. After ridiculing his girlfriend, director Astor Williams Stevenson finds himself single and trying to discover what exactly he wants. At the same time, he attempts to get a film off the ground and soon learns that his creative vision will not align with that of his crew. As Astor goes on a number of dates, his abrasiveness and cynical attitude towards life seems to become ever more crystallized. The film's centerpiece is a fearless performance from Clark as he embodies a man whose self-loathing is hidden by arrogance. Yet, for all his bluff and bluster Clark manages to add a sheen of vulnerability to make Astor a compelling and sympathetic character. While the film is reminiscent of great American cinema of the 1970s (with some slight echoes of the works of Woody Allen) with a somewhat staccato structure made up of disparate moments, this is still a thoroughly modern affair replete with some graphic sexuality and an often-harsh takedown on modern views of dating. Despite its moments of cynicism, this also manages to be a witty, funny must for all those who appreciate strong voices in American cinema.