My First Mister
Tags: gothic

Plot synopsis:
In an effort to secure employment at the upscale Century City Mall in Los Angeles, Jennifer (Sobieski), an 18-year-old "goth-punk" girl who just graduated from high school, makes a nuisance of herself at a clothing store run by 49-year-old Randall Harris (Brooks), who eventually hires her on a trial basis as a stockroom clerk. Jennifer refers to herself simply as "J", and thus asks Randall if it's okay if she calls him "R", to which he accedes.
One day, as there is nothing more to be done in the stockroom, J makes her way to the front of the store and begins to interact with customers. Encouraged by her initiative but concerned that her appearance may frighten away potential customers, Randall buys her an appropriate outfit and promotes her to saleswoman.
Feeling isolated from the other people in her life, J finds she is attracted to Randall. After an incident that makes him question whether he can continue to trust her, J demonstrates her trust in him by revealing that she engages in self harm. The two thus strike up an unlikely friendship as they realize that neither has anyone close with whom they can confide. Made aware that J is unhappy living with her mother (who seems to pay more attention to her two pugs than her daughter) and stepfather, Randall offers her an advance on her salary so she can afford her own place, then helps her find an apartment.
As their friendship progresses, Randall consents to getting a (very small) tattoo at J's urging, only to realize at the last possible moment that he can't go through with it. In a fit of despair he declares that they can't continue as friends. Confronted by J at his home a short time later, Randall confides his many phobias, which endears him to J even more. Their friendship restored, Randall reluctantly accompanies J to a cemetery to lie on the graves of the deceased to feel their "energy", something she does regularly. Due to the lateness of the hour, they go back to Randall's where they bond over tea and J spends the night on the couch.
The following morning J discovers Randall collapsed in the street after having told her he was going "for a run." She learns that Randall has had leukemia for many years and doesn't have long to live, and is initially very angry that he didn't share this with her.
While collecting some of Randall's personal items from his home, J discovers the name and address of his ex-wife. Unable to contact her by phone, J drives to Albuquerque only to find her (and Randall's) son Randy, a deeply cynical young man who tells her that his mother died in a car accident six months earlier, and had told him that his father had died before he was born. Although he initially refuses to drive to L.A. to see the father he's never known before he dies, he ultimately does so. Because of J's intervention, Randall and his son have a brief time to get to know one another, for which Randall is very grateful.
J's friendship with Randall inspires her to seek a closer relationship with her family, especially her mother. In Randall's final days, Jennifer organizes a dinner at which his son and Jennifer's family come together to celebrate his life.

Review: `American Beauty' and more recently `Ghost World' carried the usual criticism of this socially questionable alliance, from downright damage in the former to uncertainty about how it could ever work in the latter.In `My First Mister,' starring Albert Brooks and Leelee Sobieski, the union works so beautifully in the first half of the film I thought even I could try it.
Director Christine Lahti, who won an Oscar for best short film, "Lieberman in Love," concentrates on the flowering friendship between a Goth girl who needs a friend and a job and a 49 year-old haberdasher who has jettisoned everyone in order to live out his life painlessly for everyone.Jill Franklyn, who wrote the "Yada Yada" episode of "Seinfeld," pens perfect lines for the understated Brooks, such as when he first sees Sobieski: "Scram.
When the time comes for sex, as it always does in Hollywood, no one cares, even the audience, because the point is the friendship.In the second half of the film Lahti lets go of her originality to indulge the genre with the usual fatal twist, easy reconciliation of family, and renewal for Sobieski found in a most unbelievable coincidence.
Yes, she does look like Helen Hunt, but that is where the similarity ends.Albert Brooks has always had a manner of delivering his lines as though he is making an appeal to his listener's better sense.
Leelee Sobieski and Albert Brooks are good chemistry in "My First Mister.".
This is a story of an unlikely couple, a 49-year-old clothing store manager (Brooks) and a rebellious 17-year-old girl (Leelee) just finishing high school.
The film strongly implies that she wanted the relationship to a romantic one, but he learns to love her as a family member, perhaps the daughter he never had.Leelee was in two films released in 2001, this one and "Joy Ride." In the latter I found her acting wooden and uninspired.
Jennifer Benson (Leelee Sobieski) is a seventeen years old misfit punk teenager that uses piercing, tattoos, wears only black clothes and dyed hair, self-inflicts injures and has fixation for death.
While looking for a job, she meets the forty-nine years old Randall Harris (Albert Brooks), a lonely man who owns a shopping store, and he hires her.
They become close friends, and their interaction changes their behavior for good while secrets and feelings are disclosed.This is the second work of the excellent underrated actress Christine Lahti as director that I see (the other one is the short "Lieberman in Love"), and also a surprisingly great movie.
Leelee Sobieski has another great performance in the role of a disturbed and rebellious teenager, needy of love and care, who changes her behavior when she meets her soul-mate friend in a middle-age man.
I am not fan of Albert Brooks, but he is great performing Randall Harris, the man who touches Jennifer in the heart.
A feel good weeper comedy/light-drama, "My First Mister" tells of the coming of age of a teenaged pin cushion goth female (Sobrieski) who's into self mutilation and talking to dead people and her platonic love affair with a middle aged conservative and phobic man (Brooks).
As the film wears on it plateaus and becomes somewhat muddled by unnecessary quirky characters and an side plot about Brook's past in an apparent attempt to jerk the last tear and keep feel good moments coming.
Sobieski and Brooks make their characters real people, not stereotypes.The last 45 minutes are a little melodramatic for my tastes, but by that time I was so invested in the characters, I stuck with the film.
I expected another crappy film like Ghost World which on my scale was a -5.I was pleasantly surprised to find a really good effort and an enjoyable, meaningful movie.
Kudos to the actors and especially Christine Lahti who showed that she is just as good behind the camera as in front of it.She successfully created a cross-generational movie.
the performances are magical, "Albert Brooks" whom I had never heard of, (me being a Brit and NOT seeing much of "Saturday Night Live"), and being the same age as myself portrayed my generation of an average Joe to a T ...and "Jennifer" played by "Leelee Sobieski" made me realise that not ALL kids are the way I see them portrayed in movies and on TV, she played the part as a REAL person (not some dimwitted moron, or violent thug) ...
It was very refreshing to watch a Hollywood film in which the Characters were not simply one dimensional and where a white middle aged,middle class MAN was not portrayed as an opportunistic ,anything goes,kind of jerk that takes advantage of a young vulnerable girl.
This movie was touching in the very sense that it asks the audience to have an open mind about the films main idea but it is equally beautiful and bittersweet.
I had just assumed this would be another Hollywood schlock-fest featuring the dry humor of Albert Brooks and Leelee Sobieski attempting to reconnect with a teenie-bopper audience.
This was such a strong film that dedicated itself to developing strong characters, to giving us honest emotions, and providing us a story that is not unfamiliar in the "real" world that it nearly left my jaw hanging on the ground.
From the opening moments in which we are focused directly on the life of Jennifer (aka "J") to the unrecognizable change to following Randall (aka "R") My First Mister will make you laugh, make you cry, and make you realize that friendship is stronger than the clothes you wear or the amount of piercings on you face.
Through the use of Brooks' "every man" persona and Sobieski's attention to detail with her character, this film gives us a rare glimpse into Lahti's near-perfect film.What initially pulled me into this film was the untraditional Hollywood story that scribe Jill Franklyn unfolds before us.
Society would tell us that this could never happen, but the Lahti persuades us by giving us two of the strongest characters to play against each other in modern cinematic history.I realize that others would argue that there have been stronger matching in Hollywood long before Brooks and Sobieski, which I would agree of classic Hollywood, but recently (basically 80s to present) it is hard to find two actors that seem to compliment each other like a great cheese and aged red wine.
The two play so well off each other that as an audience member you have the chance to enjoy both the acting as well as a very strongly developed story about family and friendship.I have talked about the story, I have talked about the characters, but none of this would have been possible if it were not for the brilliant direction behind the camera and the talented eye of minimal director Christine Lahti.
I have to confess that I enjoy anything Albert Brooks does, whether as writer or director or actor, and this movie was no exception.
The friendship between Brooks the older man and the young woman stuck in "Goth" mode was portrayed pretty realistically, as if between real people, once you accept the premise that it could happen at all.
Need I add that the performances of LeeLee Sobieski and Albert Brooks are the frosting on this most delicious of cinematic cakes?
I watched the movie on Sundance Cable T.V. network and throughly enjoyed it.I have never been an Albert Brooks fan in the past, but every movie he has written, directed or acted in has ranked very high with the critics.
this film will end up appealing to all ages because of its universal message of love.it tackles the lives of a forlorn, goth teenager who has no friends and feels completely isolated from her 'normal' family.
she cannot relate to them, or seemingly anyone else.in the course of the movie, she meets a middle-aged man who also cannot relate well to people though he certainly fits the 'normal' definition.an unlikely pair, the two strike up a meaningful and beautiful friendship that will deeply touch and inspire you.essentially, this movie is about people, their relationships, families, friends, and everything in between.i think anyone could enjoy this movie as it is strikingly human..
The material she has chosen would make for an interesting ABC Afterschool Special movie, but the quality of the writing certainly demands less talent than Albert Brooks and LeeLee Sobieski, who strain to reduce the amount of schmaltz and syrup written for them and flesh out well-rounded characters.
I know lots of girls from high school and college who could have used a hero like Jennifer, who in the end lets go of her gothic pretensions and finds real love.
LeeLee Sobieski does better than any other actress could have with this script, and Albert Brooks is always a wizard with the spoken word.
But no man, this is so cartoon, same case with Brooks' character, I think this is one of the movies where actors and actresses really felt on the edge of stupidity and shame while performing the script..
She asks Randall Harris (Albert Brooks) for a job at his menwear store and he gives her the job as long as she gets rid of the hardware.I really like these two characters.
I don't usually like "feel-good" movies, but will recommend this one to everyone.Love evolves between these two morbid people.
I could not help but notice that the love they shared for eachother is more than a family love.They can't help but feel for eachother and at the end when he just dissapeared you could not help but cry.I think that after his wife left him he could not bear to get close to anyone.Especailly in hs condition.I grew a fond love and need for him like I did with Seymour in Ghost World.You can't help but love and need these characters..
better than many so-called love stories I've seen (and I only go to see movies rated 3 out of 4 or above ...
But it's a little bit more serious and "meaningful" than his movies, which isn't a bad thing in this case.I found it to be a true hidden gem, a great movie that no one has ever heard of, and luckily an oddball friend of mine recommended it to me.Okay, what makes it good?
But it is Leelee Sobieski, who is eerily like a young Helen Hunt, who makes the movie rise to the top.
She is fantastic as the goth chick who hates her family, who hates herself, who hates life, but begins to change her tune when she meets up with similarly disenfranchised (but from a different perspective) Albert Brooks.They are an odd couple, sort of Harold and Maude-ish, you could say, and their friendship, and the humorous and touching dialogue are excellent.True, the movie does get a little corny and unbelievable in the 3rd act, but it works.
If you like good acting, you'll love Leelee Sobieski.
Leelee Sobieski puts on the best performance of the three movies I've seen her in.
One of the best drama/comedies ever written.This movie did a great job developing what would normally be an unlikely bond between: the spunkiness of youth with the set-in-my-ways old.
I know some people feel as though drawing emotion from the viewer is somewhat cliched, (as we watched the relationship between Leelee and Albert Brooks begin to weaken), but to me that's just one of the elements that's used to make great movies.
Might I also add any deviation from drawing real-life emotion from Leelee's character, Jennifer, would have turned this movie into a farce.
I thought the movie was great, and it made me feel good to know that I was not alone in raising a teenager who liked to get pierced..
I've always been a fan of Albert Brooks ("Defending Your Life" is a must see for anyone) and so I picked up this movie.
The movie starts off pretty slowly and I had recently seen Ghost World, which was also about a young girl in search of herself and someone to love.
Carol Kane is great here, as always, and you have an amazing cast of supporting character actors surrounding our heroes, Leelee and Albert.
I expect good acting from Albert Brooks for was taken with excellent performances from the rest of the cast.
This seemed at first promising...Leelee Sobieski almost unrecognizable under tattoos and body piercings with the usually superb Albert Brooks to play off of.
Sure, it seemed like familiar territory, a Hollywoodized trip down the road covered so much better by "Ghost World" (a terrific must-see film) but then there's an illness and the plot descends horribly into sappy schmaltz.
This film, while it may have had some humor in it, was a very serious film which ended up dealing very seriously about death.This is a good movie about the power of love, and if you are looking for a drama, I can recommend this film.
The story draws you in, and before you know it you are not only watching a movie but feeling it as well.
This movie is what really good filmmaking is all about; a story about real people we care about, doing things we identify with, presented in a way that touches us.
And the one who is arguably the leader of the pack, Leelee Sobieski, takes on the starring role here, in `My First Mister,' a story of two very different people, of different generations, both of whom are alone in the world (though in different ways and for different reasons), and who ultimately find what they need in one another-- and without even consciously looking for it.
Complementing Lahti's style, and assuring the success of this film, are the wonderful performances by Sobieski and Brooks.
It's the little things that Brooks does so well, and that make all the difference; he gives the audience someone with whom they can truly empathize and identify, because he so succinctly manages to express all the affecting elements of everyday life-- the minutiae of day-to-day existence, as well as the corresponding emotions-- through his characters, and it's why you're going to remember Randall for a long, long time.
An entertaining, well crafted and delivered film that promises one thing and ends up giving much more, `My First Mister,' in the final analysis, is an engaging story that goes deep and touches the heart, and without any maudlin sentimentality attached.
Characters are as real as you can get and the acting by all is great, but Leelee is great .It is a movie I will watch again to see what I missed the first time ,and then I'll watch it again because I really enjoy this film..
Director Christine Lahti has a problem: she wants her misfit teenager (Sobieski) & her middle-aged salesman (Brooks) to have a genuinely transformative relationship, but she knows making their relationship sexual would only make it a male fantasy (for that, see GHOST WORLD).
This was an enjoyable film with some great performances.I thought that Albert Brooks really was the highlight of the movie.
If anyone else had the part played by Albert Brooks, this movie would have been horrible.
Overall, the film was very uneven...it felt like Christine Lahti didn't really know what to do with Albert Brooks for much of the film.
That said, he and Leelee Sobieski have a number of good scenes together and the film features a nice cameo from John Goodman.Very good work by the costume designer by the way...particularly for Mr. Brooks..
Leelee Sobieski is very good as displaced teenager Jennifer Benson, who is disgusted and bored with her life (like many teenagers, at some point).She is in the mall looking for a jobs while in full Goth costume.
It's an awful let down.Albert Brooks gives a fine portrayal while Leelee Sobieski starts off well, but like the movie, her performance degenerates.The major flaw of the movie is lack of concept.
I went to see this movie because I read so many good reviews and also I love Albert Brooks.
Before I get into the criticism of this movie, let me say that I like Leelee Sobieski as an actress.
I was expecting to be able to relate to Leelee Sobieski's character, and while I felt she gave a good performance, the actual writing made her too unbelievable, inconsistent, and at times just really unlikeable.
Her film would seem to share a common thread with the later "Lost in Translation", but--by focusing most of the attention on the ill-tempered, foul-mouthed teenager (Leelee Sobieski, dressed like a sewer rat)--interest in the central relationship takes an awfully long time to build.
This was a story about a rebellious teenager named Jennifer Wilson (Leelee Sobieski)who lived with a so 70s family.
My First Mister, a good and often well-written and acted film, stars Leelee Sobieski, one of the best new actresses of late, co-stars as a lonley and alienated goth type girl with a lot of personal baggage.
But at least the bulk of the film is a good show to pass the time; Brooks fans won't be dissapointed and Sobieski is also a note of big interest.
I have never cared much for Albert Brooks,  but he is okay in this film.
Nevertheless,  the film is worth watching because Leelee Sobieski is simply hypnotic.
I'm not sure why, but I like Albert Brooks movies.
If I wanted to see Albert Brooks die in a movie I would have watched " Defending your Life" again.
This film is exactly like "Life as a House" and just as cliche riddled but I do have to say that Albert Brooks and Leelee Sobieski really do have good chemistry and the scenes of them together are nicely played out.
I think this movie got the wrong title even if Leelee Sobieski's character Jennifer mentioned the word "lover" about Albert Brooks' character Randall.
"My First Mister" stars Leelee Sobieski as Jennifer, a suicidal teenager.