Ennui

 A pair streaming on Mubi:

ACTUAL PEOPLE (B-minus) - Every generation gets the Mumblecore touchstones it deserves. Kit Zauhar writes, directs and stars as a college philosophy senior who can't be bothered to pass her last class before graduation, letting her jumbled love life get the best of her.

Zauhar stars as Riley, an attractive 22-year-old whose mind is just not in the game and who seems distracted by random micro-aggressions, to the point where she must eventually explain to her parents why she won't be graduating in a few weeks. Her main distractions are men and sexual politics. Maybe she can't pass her last class because she flunked the Bechdel Test. Zauhar's debut has all the hallmarks of a student film and presents herself as an antiquated anti-feminist. 

She sleeps with her roommate once and then wonders why he's bothered to the point of not wanting to renew her lease. She's hung up on her ex -- who cheated on her -- and then crushes too much on a hunk from her hometown of Philadelphia. Several times she is seen wincing from a yeast infection. She has a wry habit of gulping glasses of water. 

Riley's friends come and go so quickly that it is hard to keep track of them. Some of the men also seem indistinguishable. A few adults show up -- a teacher, a therapist -- and they highlight Zauhar's awkward weaknesses as an actor. She can be quite appealing, especially with little quirks, but a couple of emotional episodes really stretch her talents. (Zauhar's sister shows up as Riley's younger sister, and she has much more pizzazz.)

Visually, she has a fondness for shaky hand-held camera shots and uncomfortable close-ups. She provides occasional interludes, showing characters out of context, usually splitting the screen three ways. In sum, this is a bit of a mess, but it's not without its charm. Zauhar has a decent ear for dialogue, and she captures the angst of a young adult on the brink of graduation, torn about which direction she should take -- which describes Zauhar and Riley alike.

ZERO FUCKS GIVEN (B) - Adele Exarchopoulos ("Blue Is the Warmest Color") stars as a screwed-up flight attendant who can barely keep her life together as she soldiers through her thankless job at a low-rent airline. Her Cassandre is an expressionless hedonist who cares about little other than surviving from moment to moment.

That involves a lot of alcohol (often in tiny bottles) and zipless sex without strings attached, as she flies from city to city all over the world. Exarchopoulos manages to convey a range of feelings via this emotionally stunted character. She isn't so much dead inside as comfortably numb. Cassandre has her moments of joy and human connection; it's just that it never leads to anything lasting.

The script seems to leave room for improvisation, and that gives the movie a lived-in feeling. Newcomers Julie Lecoustre and Emmanuel Marre (with an assist from co-writer Mariette Desert) create a narrative arc that gradually builds to a grounding of Cassandre, where we finally get a glimpse of her family life -- and somewhat of an explanation for the state she is in.

Without Exarchopoulos, who has a face made for the big screen, this could have been dull and listless. But she brings depth and warmth to a character whose outward expression tells the rest of the world to fuck off.

BONUS TRACK

From the end credits of "Actual People," Lightning Bug with "October Song, Pt. II":

And from the final scene of "Zero Fucks Given," Viyolin with "Faded."