{"id":34293,"date":"2022-09-20T23:08:18","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T06:08:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/behindthelensonline.net\/site\/?p=34293"},"modified":"2022-09-20T23:08:18","modified_gmt":"2022-09-21T06:08:18","slug":"match-is-a-timely-and-topical-tale-on-the-battlefield-of-online-dating-movie-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/behindthelensonline.net\/site\/reviews\/movies\/match-is-a-timely-and-topical-tale-on-the-battlefield-of-online-dating-movie-review\/","title":{"rendered":"MATCH is a timely and topical tale on the battlefield of online dating – Movie Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Writer\/Director Sean McGinly<\/strong><\/a> has proven to be a force in the world of independent film for more than two decades and going back to the days of films like \u201cThe Truth About Juliet\u201d, then a decade later with the unforgettable star-studded \u201cThe Great Buck Howard\u201d and most recent films \u201cLawless Range\u201d and \u201cSilver Lake\u201d. More than just a narrative storyteller, McGinly touched our hearts and our souls with his very personal and powerful documentary \u201cBrothers\u201d in 2006. And now he delivers something truly original, timely, and topical delving into the good, the bad, and the ugly of online dating with MATCH.<\/p>\n

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The story of two people who meet on an online dating site, MATCH stars Ahna O\u2019Reilly, Austin Nichols, and Spencer Garrett. O\u2019Reilly and Nichols are Jennifer and Ian, respectively; meeting online via a dating app, their casual flirtation quickly heats up with intensity and intimacy. With distance and the internet between them, this virtual relationship continues as they explore their backgrounds, personal issues, and feelings for each other. But what happens once they meet and the connection they had devolves into desperation and obsessiveness that reveals the real truths about each of them; truths that texting and emailing hide?<\/p>\n

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With a cast of only three and none ever onscreen together, MATCH is told through visuals with texts, emails, and one-sided phone messages as McGinly takes us deep into the mindsets of Jennifer and Ian, immersing us in their bubble. Even when reference is made to in-person meet-ups, McGinly keenly keeps the audience in the dark and never shows an actual physical connection between the pair, thus building the fires of tension with ambiguity, doubt, and imaginations running amok as to what really transpired during those encounters.<\/p>\n

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Visually engaging thanks to split screens which metaphorically serve as dutch angles in a traditional narrative film to signify a shift of power, emotion, and tone, McGinly, together with his cinematographer Thomas Scott Stanton and Animation Supervisor Kris Magyarits, intensifies the experience by going monochromatic in black and white, employing pops or subtle tinges of color to represent various emotions as they emerge during this virtual relationship and more. The thought and craftsmanship put into the visual grammar to develop the visual tonal bandwidth are exceedingly well done. Adding to the visual dynamic is the work of veteran editor Charles Norris who develops pacing and emotional range with rapier precision.<\/p>\n

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Performances excel, most notably that of Ahna O\u2019Reilly who, as Jennifer, evokes multiple emotions within us as moviegoers, tapping into real-world experiences that many of us have either witnessed, been guilty of ourselves, or known individuals in situations like that of Jennifer and Ian. Austin Nichols is affable and engaging as Ian which allows for a powerful yin and yang back-and-forth dynamic between Jennifer and Ian. So strong and so emotive are O\u2019Reilly and Nichols that we often forget they are not in the same room together, something that feeds into today\u2019s zeitgeist of impersonal connections that rely on the internet as the interface between individuals. More often than not, McGinly reminds us that an individual\u2019s tone does not translate well with a text or an email, resulting in frustration, miscommunication, misintention, and more.<\/p>\n

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Entering into the ever-building tension-fueled fray between Jennifer and Ian is veteran actor Spencer Garrett who is perfect as a high-powered Beverly Hills attorney Michael Kend, signifying the film\u2019s increasingly darkening tone.<\/p>\n

The icing on the cake is Ryan Thomas Johnson\u2019s score; a constant drumbeat that vacillates in beat and modulation, as omnipresent as a heartbeat, rising blood pressure, or the battle of dating.<\/p>\n

Writer and Director – Sean McGinly<\/p>\n

Cast – Ahna O\u2019Reilly, Austin Nichols, Spencer Garrett<\/p>\n

by debbie elias, 09\/17\/2022<\/p>\n

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