Shiva Baby (2020), directed by Emma Seligman

Shortly to graduate from college without a major because she has changed it so frequently, Danielle has few job prospects. Her parents pay her rent and bills and think she earns her pocket money from babysitting. After a problematic sexual encounter she attends a shiva, the wake following a funeral, at the behest of her parents. There she is shocked to find both her ex-girlfriend and her current sugar daddy, with his wife and baby. Negotiating the round of family, lovers and family friends becomes an exercise in claustrophobic panic, which triggers Danielle’s fraught relationship with food. A compact 90 minutes, the film somehow feels longer. It’s slow pace and repetitive action indicating the material is stretched to fill time. It has a few wryly funny moments, but not enough of them. Rachel Sennet is very good as Danielle, working hard to attract some sympathy for a character that represents the worst aspects of the millennial stereotype. The expectations of her and pressure on her are immense, but so is the financial and emotional support provided to her. This makes her actions and decisions beyond questionable, especially in contrast to her delightfully together ex.