Sharp comedy-drama Appropriate Behavior made a splash at Sundance and it’s easy to see why. Shirin (Desiree Akhavan) is doing it tough, working through a tricky transitional phase. She has a bad case of post-break-up blues, faces constant pressure from her Persian family and, professionally speaking, she’s completely at sea. Appropriate Behavior follows Shirin’s hit-and-miss efforts to rebuild her life. The filmserves up before-and-after snapshots: tender exchanges, goofy interludes and cringeworthy encounters, a feeble ménage à trois accounting for the latter. (which, incidentally, is one of the best acted scenes of the entire film).
While it’s not the most unique or complex premise, Akhavan – doubling as the writer and director of the film – works wonders with it, weaving an engaging story. Appropriate Behaviour is particularly strong in its realism, striking a perfect, unpretentious balance between sob-story and fairytale rom-com. It’s no wonder its been linked to Lena Dunham’s HBO series Girls: they’re both funny, similarly evocative and deal in the same sort of charm. Akhavan’s characters – their motivations, their struggles and their actions – are realistic and relatable. You connect with the mild euphoria of Shirin’s triumphs, just as you experience the stings of her bad decisions. It comes as no surprise to discover that Akhavan has declared this a personal film. In fact, it’s easy to imagine Shirin as Akhavan’s alter-ego.
If there’s anything irksome about Appropriate Behavior, it’s the film’s ending. There’s no clear resolution to Shirin’s arc and nor could there ever be: there’s no room for a ‘happily ever after’ in a film such as this. Appropriate Behaviour ultimately becomes trapped in its own parameters as a grounded comedy-drama, ending on an unconvincing note. All is redeemed, though, by the film’s snappy wit, a host of accomplished performances and a recurring tendency to tug at the heartstrings.
An affecting, well-written comedy-drama, Appropriate Behavior is the kind of unshowy, character-driven film that’s nonchalant in its excellence.
BY NICK MASON
