Sweet Misery

Jim (Nathan Fillion) gently pours fresh berries into a filled pie crust. Jenna (Keri Russell) removes melted dark chocolate from the stove top and pours it over the berries. As she stirs the mixture together, Jim leans over her in an achingly loving way. These two are so adorable together, you want to forget that they're both married to other people. And, for that moment in the kitchen, you do.

Scenes like this one are what make Waitress an extraordinary movie. Scenes that whisk you away from your movie theatre seat and transport you to this little southern town. I was so lost in this movie, I was almost startled when someone in the theatre laughed or coughed.

Jenna is a waitress at Joe's Pie Diner in a small southern town. She's married to an awful man from whom she simply wants to get away. Then she finds out she's pregnant. That's when her life starts to turn around. The new doctor in town is the adorable Dr. Pomatter. There's an instant attraction between the two, but Jenna tries to ignore it because there's a Mrs. Dr. Pomatter. But the attraction grows and soon they're all over each other at every moment.

I wanted to see this movie because I love Nathan Fillion. I also have a fondness for Keri Russell, so the cast sold me. Good thing I got treated to bright visuals and a wonderful story too.

Writer/director Adrienne Shelly was an extremely talented woman. Her prose are so quirky yet so natural, and the way she directed every scene made me instantly love every character. (Well, not every character. Jeremy Sisto's Earl is a pitiful little man who deserved an elbow to the nose once or ten times. But I know I wasn't supposed to love Earl, so it's okay.) The only disappointing moment for me was the end. I didn't mind the idea of everything being wrapped up with a nice bow. It's just that I didn't like the packaging so much. Sorry for the cryptic talk, but I can't give details without revealing major plot points. Let's just say a couple of characters should've gotten a different deal.

Even with a couple of small disappointing moments at the end, I still highly recommend Waitress. It's as sweet as Jenna's pies, and it's a wonderful movie to honor Adrienne Shelly's memory.