Two New Yorkers fall in love despite the chaos that surrounds their relationship. Not quite a new premise, but take off the typical Hollywood ending and it works.
"Prime" (so called because both lovers are in their sexual prime), from writer/director Ben Younger ("Boiler Room"), follows the relationship of fashion photographer Rafi (Uma Thurman), a recently divorced 37-year-old Upper East-Sider from a broken home, and Dave (Bryan Greenberg), a 23-year-old hip-hop loving Jewish painter from Brooklyn who lives with his grandparents. The two fall in love the moment they meet, and although their relationship seems charmed, they quickly discover how difficult an adult relationship with a 14-year age gap can be.
Meryl Streep is priceless (repeat: priceless), as Dave's overbearing Jewish mother and - coincidentally - Rafi's psychoanalyst. She is caught in the middle of their relationship when she discovers the unapproved non-Jewish girl her son has been dating is her patient Rafi, who has already disclosed the intimate sexual details of her new relationship (including, yes, penile description). Streep's character must remain as impartial as possible regarding the relationship, because as a therapist she feels the need to help Rafi grow as a person and is happy for her when she is in love. But as a mother, she's upset by her son's decision to date a 37-year-old divorcee not of the Jewish faith.
From this point forward, the movie moves a tad slowly. Since the viewer knows that Rafi's therapist is Dave's mom, the "inadvertently describing your gratuitous sex-capades to your hot lover's mother" premise gets a little dry. However, Streep's reactions to Rafi's sessions remain laughable throughout the movie, and since all the characters are original and well-developed, even scenes without much action tend to be interesting and quite funny.
Great characters in the film help ensure that scenes that don't advance the plot remain amusing. The director does a great job of letting the viewer see Rafi and Dave's relationship through the eyes of everyone in the supporting cast, from Rafi's doorman, who helps the two to reconcile, to Rafi's flamboyantly gay best friend, who admittedly wants Dave for himself.
Other bonuses to the film include Dave's best friend, a pie-throwing nerd who has never been on a second date; Dave's grandmother, who he believes died because he once dated a black girl; and Streep's quirky, anti-Q-tip and red wine-chilling ways.
The film also features a pretty good soundtrack including some great older jazz tunes, underground hip-hop, Rufus Wainwright and Le Tigre.
"Prime" is a smart and original comedy that doesn't offend the viewer with a trite and predictable Hollywood ending. It presents two realistic people, with realistic relationship problems, living in a realistic setting. It may not, however, be suitable for the Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks impossible-relationship-works-out-because-love-conquers-all crowd.
