In life, one always has the option of just being nice. With the endearing SXSW Grand Jury Prize winner Shithouse – an overtly sensitive college-campus drama that riffs on the sub-genre of conversation-driven romance films like Before Midnight –  and now with Cha Cha Real Smooth, writer/director/star Cooper Raif has proven this to be his modus operadi. Raif’s second feature is an unironically nice film about a recent college grad who falls for the attractive – and engaged – mom of a middle schooler with autism. The kind-hearted temperament of Raif’s films are disarmingly genuine, if skirting the line with being almost – to put it in middle school terms – lame. But for those who can vibe on Raif’s decidedly kind wavelengths, Cha Cha Real Smooth is a feel-good crowdpleaser – with enough complications to keep things interesting. Read More