Medicine for Melancholy (2008)

3 Stars (out of 4)

Hangover Do-Over

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Shot in San Francisco, Medicine for Melancholy has a uniquely sleepy, dewy look, making our fair city look like a quiet corner of Europe. Micah (Wyatt Cenac) and 'Jo (Tracey Heggins) wake up next to each other after a drunken party and proceed to spend the day together, getting to know one another as people. Of course, they have their dramatic ups and downs: 'Jo already has a boyfriend and Micah occasionally succumbs to angry tirades about race and its place in the Bay Area, but writer/director Barry Jenkins also allows for cozy silences and laughter as well. The film also gets in some terrific quirky pop music that adds to the mood, but takes a major stumble when it tries to insert a glaring message about the San Francisco housing crisis; it's a clumsy and blatant hiccup in an otherwise lovely movie.