Women in Trouble [Import]

***1/2

An odd but strangely compelling indie comedy, "Women in Trouble" does just what the title suggests; it puts an assortment of lovely ladies into humorously dire predicaments. Two women, Connie Britton ("Friday Night Lights") and the newly pregnant porn star Elektra (Carla Gogina), are stuck together in a stalled elevator; Adrianne Palicki (also of "Friday Night Lights") and Emmanuelle Chrichi are sex workers who witness a crime and have to run to safety; Sarah Clarke ("24") is a therapist whose husband ("The Mentalist"'s Simon Baker) is having an affair with one of her patients; and Marley Shelton is an engaged stewardess who's unfortunate enough to have the rock star (Josh Brolin) who's performing sex on her in the airplane bathroom die when the plane hits turbulence. The storylines, which seem disparate at first glance, do manage to dovetail into one another by movie's end.

As written and directed by Sebastian Gutierrez, the situations are played for both humor and sentiment, as we get to see just some of the absurd things women are forced to go through on a daily basis. And in each case, it seems, the women who are "in trouble" are aided by other women who are in trouble, essentially leading to a special bond of womanhood that helps get them through tough times. The dialogue is generally sharp and witty without ever becoming denigrating or smart-alecky, and the situations the women find themselves in are just absurd enough to keep them from becoming soap-operatic but realistic enough to make us care.

As with most movies that engage in multiple plotlines, some of the stories and some of the scenes are better than others, and, honestly, the film might have benefited from a little less cleverness and a little more focus overall. Still, it has its moments.

True to its title, 2009's "Women In Trouble" is about a bunch of women with an assortment of trouble. The film begins with two women inside a Mexican jail, which turns out to be a film-with-a-film parody sequence of an exploitation movie. You eventually realize that the whole 90 minute feature is self-reflexive parody; although much more subtle than the opening.

Think the Coen Brothers with group of characters speaking out-of-place dialogue in a lot of unusual situations. Think Seinfeld with a lot of disparate pieces in some way related to each other, with the connections eventually coming into focus. Think "The Hours" (2002) with a group of vaguely uneasy women exploring the mysteries of female discontent and finding some solace from shared confidences.

Not a lot of physical humor, nor good acting, nor impressive production design. The writing is the strength of the production and it is excellent. If you don't get subtle parody you would be wise to stay away because there isn't much here for you. You are not the target audience. The only exception would be Marley Shelton fans. She has a very entertaining and clever 10-minute sequence, and looks incredibly hot in a tight flight attendant uniform. For her fans this is a must see even if most of the other material should not happen to be quite their cup of tea.

Those knocking the film simply failed to make the necessary connection with the material, so I wouldn't put much stock in the negative comments and reviews unless they are from someone who tends to mirror your own preferences.

Special features on the DVD includes deleted scenes, a satirical interview that runs after the credits, and Spanish subtitles; given the audio quality and the essential importance of the dialogue the money would have been much better spent on English subtitles.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

What a pleasant surprise this movie was! Many efforts have been made in crafting films with several parallel stories taking place at the same time, with each one connected at the end. In most cases, the results have been either disastrous or unsatisfactory. This is definitely not the case with "Women in Trouble," a funny and delicious movie that you will truly savor from beginning to end.

Exquisitely directed by Sebastian Gutierrez, in this film you'll find a story about a top porn actress that gets pregnant, a rock star trying to have sex with an attractive flight attendant, two women trapped in an elevator, another porn star that witness a crime, a man that is cheating on his wife, and much more. Believe it or not, all these stories and their characters are connected and make sense in the end. I haven't seen such ability in making sense of so many issues at one time in a movie, in such a wise way, since Pedro Almodovar's "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown." I guarantee that you will love this movie.

"Women in Trouble" is loaded with award-winning performances, which include Carla Gigino, Connie Britton, Adrianne Palicki, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Isabella Gutierrez, Josh Brolin, Simon Baker, Elizabeth Berkley, and more. The Blue-ray edition of this film includes deleted scenes, teaser trailers, and more. (USA, 2009, color, 90 min plus additional materials)

Reviewed by Eric Gonzalez for [...] on February 15, 2010.