June
  

Director: Chris Hutson
Writer: Chris Hutson
Cast:

• Felicia Day — June Marie Jacobs
    
• Chris Henry Coffey — Jack Simenson
• Cindy Dolenc — Quinn Kennedy Rifkin
• Suzanne Ford — Eleanor Jacobs
• Ellen Geer — Grandma
• Jessica Whitney Gould — Mary
• Googy Gress — Mr. Boggs
• Heidi Hutson — Susan
• Ted Michaels — Steve
• Patrick Roman Miller — Mika
• Clarinda Ross — Mrs. Nedman

FatKid Films: 2004

Felicia Day, the star of June, describes the film as quirky, and that is accurate. It's an offbeat romantic comedy set in a Los Angeles beachfront neighborhood, Venice (or Venice Beach). June is an aspiring professional violinist who works as a waitress in a coffee shop. She dreams of romance, which looks as though it might be coming true when a dreamy guy moves in next door.

In addition to the flood and ebb tides of romance, and plenty of wavelets on its beach, June's interaction with her coffee shop co-workers and patrons and friends, and with her family, make the story. Chris Henry Coffey portrays the young corporate lawyer who has fled stultification in New York City, and Cindy Dolenc is a standout as the self-consciously superb woman with the inside track. Jessica Whitney Gould portrays another waitress at the coffee shop, June's high-energy friend and confidante — a nice contrast to June's character. Ted Michaels and Patrick Roman Miller at the neighborhood video-rental store add solidity to the confusion. And for morbid humor, Ellen Geer's grandmotherly open-coffin rehearsals, loyally assisted by June, provide savory among the sweets, bitters, and chuckles.
  

I want to mention that on the June DVD besides the feature, we have Commentary and Outtakes (boo-boos) which are interesting; but also Deleted Scenes. These latter capture the creative process at work, as some of the turns not taken were filmed. That these scenes, all workably entertaining in themselves, were left on the cutting-room floor speaks to the disciplined vision with which this "quirky" film was made, and why the end result feels right and good. A lesson for directors and editors.
  

Felicia Day really illumines the movie. Her spirit is infectious, her character feels romantically realistic, and her violin rehearsals fit neatly into the plot. As something she was doing between Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the final Season 7, as one of the "Potentials", and launching her Internet success The Guild (as Codex), June is a fine film to see.

© 2011 Robert Wilfred Franson