Kino Lorber
One of the pleasant surprises from last year’s Tribeca Film Festival was Rachel Israel’s KEEP THE CHANGE, a romantic comedy that examines the highs and lows of a relationship between two autistic adults, played by Brandon Polansky and Samantha Elisofon. It’s a really nice movie that makes you forget you’re watching non-actors with Autism interacting.
Polansky plays aspiring Broolyn filmmaker David who has been sent by a judge to attend a social program at the Jewish Community Center. There, he meets Elisofon’s Sarah, and the two bond as they try to figure out how to have a normal relationship.
The film also stars Arrested Development‘s Jessica Walter as David’s mother, Tibor Feldman and Nicky Gottlieb and Will Deaver, the latter two being non-actors who have Autism.
Keep the Change won awards at Tribeca for Best U.S. Narrative Feature and Best New Narrative Director.
I didn’t really care for last year’s doc Dina, which was about a similar subject — two autistic adults in love — but somehow, Israel worked with her two inexperienced actors to create something quite charming and lovely
Kino Lorber will release Keep the Change on March 16 at New York’s Quad Cinema and then expand to L.A. on March 23. You can watch the first trailer below.
Edward Douglas | East Coast Editor
