This is, mostly, a very bad movie. Even though it's only 2 hours (this is a review strictly for the 1st part), it massively drags and often feels like a rough cut that the director didn't want to cut anything out of. It also feels like it's mostly improvised, but it's not good improvisation. Some deluded critics have compared this to the films of Jacques Rivette and Eric Rohmer, and honestly, they should know better. There is only a superficial similarity to Rivette, in that the film has a play in it like many Rivette's films do. The only similarity to Rohmer is that the characters talk a lot as they do in Rohmer's films. There are some scenes which are unintentionally funny. The May Raye characters are just bizarre for their own sake and their appearance at the town hall at the end of the film is so incredibly bad and unintentionally hilarious. There's also a "Hollywood actor" character which is also funny, and he goes off the rails in the town hall scene as well.
The only good things in the film are some nice performances. Janeane Garofalo is rather funny in the film, despite only appearing in the first five minutes and then disappearing for the rest of the film, and the woman who performs a scene from Uncle Vayna from Chekov is very good as well. Much of the acting is amateurish throughout, and the ending is just weird and has a very stupid, "self aware" song over the credits (lyrics like "end of part one, here's the end credits). Don't waste your time on this one.
The only good things in the film are some nice performances. Janeane Garofalo is rather funny in the film, despite only appearing in the first five minutes and then disappearing for the rest of the film, and the woman who performs a scene from Uncle Vayna from Chekov is very good as well. Much of the acting is amateurish throughout, and the ending is just weird and has a very stupid, "self aware" song over the credits (lyrics like "end of part one, here's the end credits). Don't waste your time on this one.