RENDEZVOUS IN CHICAGO
dir. Michael Glover Smith, 2018
69 mins. United States.

RENDEZVOUS IN CHICAGO is separated into three discrete vignettes: the first concerns a young man named Paul (Kevin Wehby) angling to woo a grad student named Delaney (Clare Cooney) he meets in a bar. Paul's innocuous-enough pickup attempt sets the stage for a bittersweet and frequently hilarious rumination on compatibility in short-and-long-terms, perfectly matched by the subsequent passages. Part II follows a couple (Rashaad Hall and Matthew Sherbach) weighing whether to get a cat or a dog, while one half privately considers popping The Question. Perhaps inevitably, Part III addresses breakup, in the form of a 20something schlub named Wyatt (Shane Simmons) whose girlfriend Julie (Nina Garnet) happens upon him in bed with another woman. The overall portrait of dating life - with all its agonies, ecstasies and nauseating in-betweens - is drawn with a delicate touch and a knack for sparkling dialogue.