A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) [2023]

2023 NEWFEST FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW!

As Lorenita (Lorena Russi) recounts the time when she once had six cavities, she remembers the time in which her imaginary friend came to be. That imaginary friend’s name is Boo (Adam Jepsen), and he’s a soldier who died during the Civil War. A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) is Lorenita’s story as she tries to come to terms with her past, present, and future.

The thing that A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) does better than anything else is makeup. In order for Boo to resonate with viewers, his makeup needs to be spot on, it needs to effectively convey the time period of which he is a part and allow us to understand and appreciate the sentiment behind the character. We are often drawn in close to Boo, seeing nearly every nuance of his dilapidated face–and the makeup allows us to appreciate him, to understand him, and even better, it allows us to understand the story.

A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) is part of NewFest, a film festival that deals only with films existing in the LGBTQ+ space. The thing I love about these films is that they aren’t afraid to be different, to speak their minds, or to explore new cinematic avenues. What I tend to find frustrating, however, is the fact that they can sometimes be overly aggressive. A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) thrusts itself into the category of over-aggressive films that seemingly want to accomplish one thing and one thing only–push an agenda. I’m not saying that this isn’t a story that should be written, or that it’s somehow invalid–but its approach is all wrong. As I was constantly told what to think or how to feel, I found myself drifting further and further from the film, its story, and its characters. I can’t be the only one that felt this way, and this is most certainly a detriment to the film.

As a result of the aggressive nature of A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer), and the time spent developing Boo–I’m not sure that Lorenita is given the attention needed in order for her to thrive. She’s really only given once small space in the film to exist, and there is only one portion of her that is ever given the chance to develop–and that is her sexual orientation. There is so much time spent on that aspect of the character that she ultimately becomes one dimensional, boring even. I would have liked Lorenita to have developed more, or to have seen any stock put into any other aspect of her being–but the film fails in this regard.

I’m sitting here, a couple of days removed from watching A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer), and while I don’t usually wait this long to write a review, I’m struggling to remember parts of the film. I typically do a great job of retaining important information about film, but I’m struggling here. That says one thing to me–A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer) wasn’t entertaining. I can tell you that this is true, that when I finished watching the film, I can remember rolling my eyes and thinking that I wasted too much time watching it. There are plot points that I couldn’t remember until I really sat and thought about it, and there were instances that I can remember and don’t care much for. With all of this being said, Boo is the best part of A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title You Prefer), and he almost feels like Writer-Director Russi’s attempt to appeal to a wider range of viewers, because most else in the film is divisive and difficult to appreciate.

Written & Directed by Lorena Russi.

Starring Lorena Russi, Adam Jepsen, Karina Milan, Savannah DesOrmeaux, Carlos Cuellar, etc.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/10