I would say the beginning of the film takes place in the early 70s, because then the math would be correct (25 years later). And most of the film is definitely mid-to-late 90s because of the laptop being used in the one scene.
I think the 60s assumption stems from the small-town feel (cute cafe/shop where he suggests a hat as a gift, small local theater, Klemmer's cafe/bakery (and the apartment above it)... it just seems like a mellow, slow-moving town.. the family is a strong contrast to the quiet town... being as strange as they are (and the movie also mentions how weird the mom was).
And another assumption about the 60s comes from Mol's style throughout the film. As a straight guy, I absolutely love the way Gretchen Mol dresses in the movie. The 50s-60s subtle thing is extremely attractive in a woman. Symbolizes maturity and gives her character a wholesome, pure vibe, completely opposite of the "Jersey Shore" style so many disgusting women seem drawn to in 2011 and currently, 2012.
Back to the small town... the one thing that threw me off a bit (not year-wise, just location-wise) was that the taxi driver was easily flagged down after the play. In such a small town, it doesn't seem like you could catch a taxi that quickly, or that they'd even offer a steady taxi service such as New York or Los Angeles. The downtown also seems rather large (as seen at the end of that scene).
All these quirks aside, I think it's a wonderful film. We have eye candy in Mol and Law, some great songs and lots of funny dialogue (my favorite scene being Martha Plimpton's quote "that pasty white gut cascades over your belt like water in a dream. What more could a woman want?" And the predictable love story that develops over a few short weeks.
I just love it. It's fresh and quirky. Different than a lot of films these days.
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arisigglin
11 years ago
"The 50s-60s subtle thing is extremely attractive in a woman. Symbolizes maturity and gives her character a wholesome, pure vibe, completely opposite of the "Jersey Shore" style so many disgusting women seem drawn to in 2011 and currently, 2012."
And in 2013, "wholesome" and "pure" are defined by a conservative "50s-60s subtle thing"? C'mon, dude. You can dress like a pin-up girl and act like Snooki. You can look like JWOWW and be *beep* saint. You don't like girls who spray tan and wear Ed Hardy? That's fine, they probably wouldn't like you either, and "disgusting women" all across the nation shouldn't have to worry about what Chris Caulder (or any dude with a self-righteous rod stuck up their bumhole) what likes or doesn't like.
:)
Oh, what? Cute movie. And yes, of course it was 1997. Remember Gwen Stefani, circa Tragic Kingdom? She had the same thing going on.
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