In this week\u2019s low-profile VOD releases, off-putting women struggle with bipolar disorder and a ticking biological clock, while horrors come from drug addiction and a vintage radio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Donor Party<\/em><\/strong> (VOD and select theaters March 3):<\/strong> It may be presented as wacky comedy, but the protagonist\u2019s cruelly manipulative plan here could be construed as a kind of sexual assault. Unhappily single Jaclyn (Malin Akerman) feels like she\u2019s running out of time to become a mother, so she agrees to a scheme concocted by her friends Molly (Erinn Hayes) and Amandine (Bria Henderson). They recruit several unwitting men for Jaclyn to sleep with over the course of one optimally fertile night, under the guise of a birthday party for Molly\u2019s husband Geoff (Rob Corddry). Characters and subplots come and go seemingly at random, and writer-director Thom Harp has no sense of what\u2019s potentially funny about any of them. The talented cast muster a few humorous moments, and Akerman and Hayes have one honest, heartfelt exchange. But even that scene is mitigated by a tired joke about a character accidentally getting high, which drags on for most of this strained, interminable farce. Grade: C<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Year Between<\/em><\/strong> (VOD and select theaters March 3):<\/strong> Writer\/director\/star Alex Heller shows a remarkable willingness to make herself look bad in her autobiographical debut feature. She plays college student Clemence, who\u2019s dealing with both bipolar disorder and, in her own words, a \u201cbad personality,\u201d and both are on full display throughout the movie. Unable to function at school, she returns to her family\u2019s suburban home, disrupting the lives of her well-meaning parents (J. Smith-Cameron and Steve Buscemi) and resentful younger siblings. Clemence is abrasive and insensitive in a way that can\u2019t solely be attributed to mental illness, and that makes it tough to fully engage with her coming-of-age journey. The dark humor is more effective than the earnest family bonding, although Heller\u2019s genuine love and gratitude eventually shine through. As with Clemence herself, those emotions are buried under layers of defensive unpleasantness that are best appreciated with a little distance. Grade: B-<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n