Mind the (Age) Gap: 'Nate & Margaret' Explores a Modern Friendship

Based on appearance alone, Nate and Margaret - the two titular protagonists at the heart of director Nathan Adloff's Nate & Margaret shouldn't be friends.  He's a gay, 19-year-old film student and she's a 52-year-old waitress by day/aspiring stand up comic by night.  But the unlikeliness of their friendship is part of the charm of this understated comedy.  Thanks to its snappy writing and strong performances by leads Tyler Ross (The Wise Kids) and Natalie West (TV's Roseanne), it's totally believable that easygoing Nate would befriend the quirky, self-deprecating Margaret and vice versa.  Of course, conflict ultimately arises when Nate finds romance in his feisty classmate James and Margaret's standup act catches the interest of a talent agent.  As their paths diverge, the two friends suddenly have less time for each other and less patience for each other's differences.

Nate & Margaret sharply observes that transitional phases can occur at any point in a person's life - and it's this common link that allows its two main characters to find common ground in spite of the age gap between them.

For those of you who missed Nate & Margaret during its nationwide film festival tour, be sure to catch it when it arrives on DVD August 28.