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). In this flick about strange bedfellows and a Spring/Autumn relationship, Lahti turns the lens on the female character illuminating many of the insecurities which beset and befuddle teen females and proves once again on celluloid that love conquers all. 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. Nonetheless, rising star Sobrieski proves to be a capable and durable centerpiece for a film worth watching front to back.

Jill Franklyn wrote this coming-of-age comedy-drama which never gets the nimble balance between laughs and pathos quite right. Antisocial 17-year-old girl, into Goth attire, facial piercings, and suicide notes (and, in the completely off-putting first scene, smearing her own blood across her handwritten poetry),cleans herself up and gets a job in the stockroom of a local men's clothing store; there, she befriends her middle-aged boss, who doesn't have any friends either. Christine Lahti made her feature directorial debut here, and the scenario is littered with celebrity friends and (for the most part) a good-natured air. Some of the early visual jokes do not work at all, though Lahti is very adept at setting up intimate conversational moments. 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. Albert Brooks is rather adorable in cardigan sweaters and a natty mustache, but Brooks does more for the movie than it does for him. By the halfway mark, the picture has sunk into a vat of mushy sentiment, clichés, and scenes lifted from other (better) movies and television shows. ** from ****

Jennifer Wilson (Leelee Sobieski) is a goth misfit and a loner at school. Her mother (Carol Kane) is divorced and remarried to Bob (Michael McKean). She doesn't get along with her father Benjamin (John Goodman). Technically, she's still a virgin and never had a boyfriend. She wants to make enough money to move out. 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. They are both appealing and wonderfully lonely people. It's funny at times. It does get into trouble when first time director Christine Lahti tries to be edgy. The imaginary sequences are not good enough and it screams trying too hard. I would rather she direct this more straight. It works best simply with Brooks and Sobieski. The rest is more or less distracting.