Eugene Kotlyarenko sets the cinematic stove to a low-broil in semi-autobiographical A Wonderful Cloud, a lackadaisical, off-kilter romp through a broken relationship in Los Angeles. The events – like the comedy – are low-key and faintly directional, though are predominantly characterized by an overwhelming essence of a half-committed shrug. The fact that Kotlyarenko and co-star Kate Lyn Sheil (The Heart Machine) both play versions of themselves – a semi-successful up-and-comer in the fashion world and a foot-dragging, clothes-flipping couch potato – and were actually former lovers gives an intriguing edge to Kotlyarenko’s mostly hands-off approach but it’s unfortunately rarely enough to light up the screen.

A Wonderful Cloud begins with the notably lo-fi footage of a now outdated iPhone crammed in the personal space of a noticeably younger Kotlyarenko and Sheil. Says Kotlyarenko, “It seemed like a perfect way to show the audience that we were once truly young and in love, before introducing them to our present day selves. By kicking it off in this way, we set the foundation that we’re not just random actors going through the motions of being a former couple, but actually have this real history, baggage, chemistry, etc.”

Sheil’s got some more light in her eyes and Kotlyarenko has about an extra Chia Pet’s worth of hair. They bicker about nothings. The gaze into space. It’s your average, uneventful but nonetheless preserved ex-GF video. The raw realism intends to cue us into the unprocessed approach Kotlyarenko pursues but, like watching someone else’s home videos, fails to engage us in their relationship nor communicate any great degree of specificity into their affairs. It could be anyone, anywhere. And here on the big screen, its inclusion seems borderline self-absorbed.

This won’t be the last time that Kotlyarenko reverts to long-lost footage of his and Sheil’s once fling and aside from providing proof that the two in fact copulated years ago, it distracts from the narrative in the here and now. Memories of yesteryear may hold value to those having experienced it, but for us uninitiated in the audience, it fails to muster up much excitement.

Sheil’s trip to Los Angeles is meant to be all business but when she reunites with Kotlyarenko, he desperately tries to impress her with prodigious taco trucks and chic after-hours clubs. They interact through and with technology, shooting selfies, skyping half-naked and disappearing into their online identities. What follows is a dry, irreverent dose of laid back comedy and a has-been romance that transforms into a fairly compelling platform for Kotlyarenko and Sheil’s back-and-forths.

Nothing involved is necessarily laugh out loud nor is A Wonderful Cloud a film that will necessarily get you thinking but Kotlyarenko undeniably succeeds in his ability to bear himself – with all his ugly parts, including his unceremonious weiner. Jealousy and childish rage populates his mind and he isn’t ashamed to let it all hang out. Though nothing resembling a must-see, A Wonderful Cloud is a exactly the kind of down-the-middle mumblecore fare that gave birth to the subgenre in the first place.

C-

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