It is impossible to talk about Waitress without discussing its sad backstory. Waitress was written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, an independent film actress who began making her own films in 1994. Last November, Shelly was found dead in her Manhattan apartment in what was presumed to be a suicide. A few days later, a housepainter that Shelly had hired confessed to the murder. When she died, Shelly had already finished Waitress and was waiting to hear whether the movie had been accepted into the Sundance Film Festival. The Sundance committee had already selected Waitress before Shelly died, and in January the film played to capacity crowds at Sundance and shortly sold to Fox Searchlight for $5 million.

After watching the trailer, I’m not surprised that Waitress was one of Sundance’s bigger sales. Although it is undoubtedly aimed at women, Waitress is not your typical chick flick and looks far superior to most films of that genre. (We’re talking about you, Georgia Rule.) Keri Russell plays a Jenna, Southern waitress who is pregnant, unhappily married, and feeling trapped by her own life. By day, Jenna works at a diner with waitresses played by Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Cheryl Hines and by Shelly herself, behind big black glasses. By night, she pours her heart into unique pies and writes letters to her unborn baby. Jeremy Sisto plays Jenna’s husband and the one and only Andy Griffith plays one of Jenna’s regular customers.

In short, Waitress looks to be a poignant comedy about what happens when life doesn’t turn out just as you’d hoped it would. I definitely want to SEE IT when Waitress opens in limited release on May 2. (Official Site)

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