Kissing Jessica Stein

While this film touches on same-sex relationships I think its strength is in showing that - regardless of gender or sexual orientation - dating and relationships are heard. The two leads have a fantastic chemistry together and they are a joy to watch. I particularly enjoyed the ending - I thought it was perfect. I watched this more than 20 years after its debut - it is interesting to see so many future stars playing bit roles. While this movie got much more critical acclaim I think Jennifer Westfeldt's Ira & Abby might be just a bit better.

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That was disappointing! But it may have been as bold as 2002 could be. Although the characters could both be unrealistically flaky at times, the relationship arc was solidly engaged in the serious business of discovering love, until the last 5 minutes blew the arc out of the water (it felt like a jarring step back from what the film had been establishing). Because of the last 5 minutes, and miscellaneous moments of silly hyperbole, I would give the film a 5 (disappointing) out of 10.

Since I watched the film and wrote that reaction at the beginning of this review, I watched a YouTube video (https://youtu.be/eS-cVCwOGrk) where the cast looks back on the making of the film which helped me put the film in its cultural context.

In retrospect, I give this film a 7 (groundbreaking) out of 10. [RomCom]

It's all so amazing until the last 5 minutes, when it seems like the whole movie is a giant queer bait. BUT I read this was like a passion project for the two lead actresses, who really thought they were shining a light on LGBTQ+ issues in the early 90's (it originated from a play), so I'll let it slide.