Film
Good Dick
A video store clerk pursues a reclusive woman who haunts the porn section of his shop, and she surprisingly lets him in—sometimes. Marianna Palka's feature directorial debut is a tender, funny, deeply awkward romantic comedy that takes stalking seriously as a problem even as it watches two damaged people genuinely connect. Charming and uncomfortable in equal measure.
If you liked this
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind2004
Two difficult people drawn together by loneliness and strangeness; a film that understands why broken people recognize each other. Achingly romantic without sentimentality, visually inventive, and it trusts you to sit with the mess.
But Deliberately sad and cyclical. If you need narrative resolution or a clear emotional arc, this will frustrate you. Some find it self-indulgent.

Before Sunrise1995
Linklater's masterpiece about two strangers connecting over one night in Vienna. Pure conversation, no plot armor, genuine tenderness. Both leads are awkward and real; both are trying. You'll recognize the specific loneliness.
But Literally just two people talking for 80 minutes. If you need plot momentum or action, you'll check your watch. The dialogue can feel precious if it doesn't land for you.

The Puffy Chair2006
Mumblecore before it had a name: low-budget, improvised, excruciatingly honest about how people actually communicate (badly). About relationships and loyalty. Funny because it's true, not because it's trying.
But Grainy, shot on video, deliberately rough around the edges. The dialogue sometimes trails off. If you want professional production values or clear story beats, this will feel unfinished.

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The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Funny Ha Ha2003
Both are intimate portraits of damaged people trying to connect through strangeness and humor. Both use awkwardness not as a flaw but as the entire emotional truth. Both trust the viewer to sit in discomfort.
Andrew Bujalski's 2005 mumblecore origin point. A young woman adrifts in New York, half-connecting with people, half-failing. It's about the texture of loneliness—how it feels to be near someone and still be alone. Shot on video, awkwardly funny, devastatingly real.
But Aggressively low-budget and anti-narrative. The dialogue often doesn't go anywhere. If you need a story or character arcs, this is a brick wall.

More like this (8)
Secretary2002
Another film about two damaged people finding each other through an unconventional dynamic. Funny, sexy, surprisingly moving. James Spader is perfect; it trusts its strange premise completely.
But Contains BDSM content. Some will find the power dynamics uncomfortable or the quirkiness forced. Tonally uneven if you're not ready for romantic comedy to go dark.

Safety Not Guaranteed2012
Indie gem about loneliness and connection. A woman infiltrates a weirdo's life for an assignment and finds something real. Gentle, funny, knows exactly what it is. Aubrey Plaza is magnetic doing nothing.
But Deliberately small and low-key. Resolves some things but not everything. If you want stakes or drama, this stays resolutely quiet.

Observe and Report2009
Dark, uncomfortable comedy about a mall cop convinced he's a hero. Released the same year as Good Dick, it shares DNA: unpleasant people, delusion, genuine darkness lurking under comedy. Bracing.
But Genuinely upsetting at points. Seth Rogen playing an unsympathetic creep. The humor punches down sometimes. Not fun, exactly.

Nights and Weekends2008
Greta Gerwig and Joe Swanberg, shot on video, about long-distance love and incompatibility. Raw and intimate. Co-directed by both leads; you're watching real people navigate real stuff.
But Entirely unscripted, shot in fragments. Some scenes go nowhere. Uncomfortably voyeuristic. If you need narrative shape, this is anti-cinema.

Someone Great2019
A woman takes her friends on a road trip to say goodbye to her ex before moving abroad. Funny, sad, occasionally crude. About friendships and how romance fits into life—or doesn't.
But Netflix rom-com; some will dismiss it as formula. Shifts between tones. If you need sophisticated dialogue or fresh ideas, it plays it somewhat safe.

Computer Chess2013
Shot in black-and-white on '80s video equipment. A chess programmer falls for a woman at a computer conference. Weirdly tender. A film that looks like its subject matter—formal, strange, specific.
But Deliberately artificial and mannered. Slow. Shot on old equipment intentionally, so it looks like junk. Conceptual art sometimes, not always a movie.

In the Mood for Love2000
Both are about two people orbiting each other, separated by circumstance or psychology. Both treat the longing as the real thing, not just foreplay to togetherness. Both understand that sometimes connection is enough without resolution.
Wong Kar-wai's masterpiece about two neighbors who discover their spouses are having an affair. Gorgeously shot, deeply romantic, about desire and longing and the impossibility of certain things. Completely hypnotic.
But Extremely slow. No plot to speak of. Visually demanding; you have to work. Some find it gorgeous wallpaper. If you want narrative momentum or clarity, you'll be watching beautiful stasis.

Paterson2016
Both celebrate unglamorous people and their small rebellions. Both understand that romance isn't always dramatic—it's sometimes just someone showing up, noticing you, trying. Both films are patient with their characters' oddness.
Jim Jarmusch's portrait of a bus driver poet in Paterson, New Jersey. Quiet, funny, entirely unrushed. About finding beauty in small routines and ordinary people. Adam Driver is gentle, present, real. A film about showing up.
But Literally nothing happens. No conflict, no stakes, no climax. Seventeen scenes of a man living his life. Some will find it boring; others find it meditative. You have to be the kind of person who can sit with that.

People
Cast
Marianna PalkaThe Woman
Jason RitterThe Man
Eric EdelsteinEric
Mark WebberDerek
Martin StarrSimon
Tom ArnoldDad
Jesse GarciaJose
Katherine WaterstonKatherine
Elisabeth WaterstonElisabeth
Charles DurningCharlie
Seth GabelKissing Man
Bryce Dallas HowardKissing Woman
Directing
- Marianna PalkaDirector
Writing
- Marianna PalkaAuthor
Production
- Cora OlsonProducer
- Jason RitterProducer
- Jennifer DubinProducer
- Jeremy GlazerProducer
- Kevin LoweProducer
- Marianna PalkaProducer
- Jeremy GlazerProduction Manager