Waitress (DVD, 2009, Widescreen; Spa Cash)

This movie almost remind me of the TV sitcom Alice: set in a small, out-of-the-way diner run by a cranky head cook with a heart of gold, and staffed by a trio of waitresses, the brash Blondie Southern one, the child-like and naive one, and the level-headed single mom (or mom-to-be, in this case), along with the typical assortment of wacky and colorful customers. Writer/director Adrienne Shelly manages to take this template and make something wonderful from it, however. Far from being a mere remake of Alice, Waitress is a well-conceived and well-executed exploration of one woman's fight to come into her own and realize her dreams, despite the bad choices and wrong decisions she's made along the way that weigh her down.

What truly sets this movie apart from most other big-screen fare is the script. The dialogue, written by Adrienne Shelly - who also directed and co-stars as Dawn, the mousy waitress who eventually finds true love - sparkles with wit, charm and humor. It's fast and it's funny, but it always feels totally natural, due in no small part, of course, to the talents of the actors and actresses charged with delivering it. Unlike the writing in, say, Gilmore Girls, widely praised for it's unique character, the dialogue in Waitress never seems forced or unnatural. It's brilliant without being obtrusive.

My only downsize to this film is the fact that the "men are dogs" message is a little heavy-handed. Without exception, all the male characters in Waitress are presented as either mean, like Earl (Jeremy Sisto), unprincipled, like Dr. Pomatter (Nathan Fillion), or just plain weird, like Ogie(Eddie Jemison's). Even Joe (Andy Griffith), who turns out to be truly kind and caring, is shown throughout most of the film to be abrasive and demanding, to the point that long-suffering Jenna is the only person who can deal with him and is truly his only friend. This is obviously a film made by a woman, primarily for a female audience, but one can't help but think that if a man made a film in which all the female characters were nothing but gold-digging, abusive, sluts, there would be a serious, if well-deserved, backlash.

Waitress is a good movie that is well worth seeing. It's tragic that Shelly, who was brutally murdered in November 2006, won't be making any further films, as this movie will no doubt bring awareness of the writer/director's impressive talents to a much wider audience than ever before. Fortunately, Waitress is a fitting memorial by which to be remembered.