Synopsis
Shirin is struggling to become an ideal Persian daughter, politically correct bisexual and hip young Brooklynite but fails miserably in her attempt at all identities.
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Cast
- Desiree AkhavanShirin
- Rebecca HendersonMaxine
- Halley FeifferCrystal
- Ryan FitzsimmonsBrendan
- Anh DuongNasrin
- Hooman MajdMerhdad
- Arian MoayedAli
- Justine CotsonasLayli
- Scott AdsitKen
- Maryann UrbanoJackie
Recommendations
- 90
Village Voice
Forget its generic title, its breakup setup, and its indie-standard Brooklyn walk-and-talks: Writer/director Desiree Akhavan's Appropriate Behavior is the freshest comedy of life and love in the city since Obvious Child. - 83
The Playlist
Funny, unique, and entirely inappropriate, Appropriate Behavior is a supremely satisfying and irreverent take on the New York rom-com. - 83
IndieWire
Appropriate Behavior isn’t a narrative about ethnicity or even LGBT struggles in the traditional sense, but rather a means of exploring the problems that result from reinforcing those very barriers. In the process, it introduces a thoroughly modern voice. - 80
The Dissolve
Appropriate Behavior is very funny, even while it’s also being real and heartfelt. It’s a raw story with refined production values, and Akhavan is so open and true in the lead role that what could be an overly insular story instead feels relatable and amusing. - 80
Time Out
For all the brazen charms of this warm, funny debut, though, its quieter moments signal a profundity that’s really worth getting excited about. - 80
Salon
Akhavan turns out to be a distinctive and oddly charismatic performer with exquisite comic timing. - 75
Slant Magazine
Desiree Akhavan's tale of queer post-breakup funk shows more nuance, and racial dimension, than its cinematic cousins. - 67
The A.V. Club
Ultimately, Appropriate Behavior works almost in spite of itself; so efficiently does the film explain why Shirin and Maxine split up that eventually it lags behind its own premise.
