There\u2019s a lot to like about Matt Spicer\u2019s Sundance darling Ingrid Goes West<\/i>\u00a0(now in theaters), a darkly comic tale about an emotionally unstable Instagram obsessive (Aubrey Plaza) who moves to California to insinuate herself into the private life of social media \u201cinfluencer\u201d Taylor Sloane (Elizabeth Olsen) and the rest of her avocado-toast-eating, sunhat-wearing inner circle. Its most unexpected charm, however, comes in the form of O\u2019Shea Jackson Jr.\u2019s affable, grounded love interest Dan Pinto \u2013 the closest the film comes to anyone \u201cnormal\u201d in the ocean of self-absorbed L.A. millennials Ingrid gloms onto. Both in the film proper, and maybe in our real lives right now, there are few people I\u2019d rather be around than Dan Pinto, Screenwriter.<\/span><\/p>\n In a lot of respects, Dan has the most thankless role in any movie: the Nice Guy. For most of the Dan Pintos out there in rom-com cinema, the best they can hope for is to be generally likable (albeit bland) and pick up the pieces of our romantic lead\u2019s many entertaining mistakes for a nice, pat happy ending. Ingrid Goes West, <\/i>and Dan in particular, is smarter than that: he\u2019s interesting, affable, and offers a genuine counterpoint to Ingrid\u2019s narcissistic journey to fame through notoriety. Being the Nice Guy in a movie like this is often the kiss of death, as nice<\/i> can easily equate to boring<\/i> \u2013 to our great relief, Dan remains endlessly watchable and magnetic.<\/span><\/p>\n Right from his introduction, Dan makes an impression, particularly as a contrast to Ingrid\u2019s own social-media-fueled journey. As Ingrid\u2019s unofficial landlord and neighbor, he stops by, armed with his vape pen and winning smile, and immediately offers her his guest house, business card and, most generous of all, his friendship. Jackson\u2019s effortless charm and charisma don\u2019t fall far from the tree (Ice Cube being his father and all), Dan\u2019s laid-back sense of ease is a refreshing alternative to the cliquish insufferability of Elizabeth Olsen\u2019s Insta-family \u2013 while they hoard followers and photos as the sum total of their self-worth, Dan just wants to relax, have fun and vape the day away.<\/span><\/p>\n Maybe the most prominent character trait of Dan Pinto is his intense, nearly single-minded love for Batman. Specifically, it seems, the Joel Schumacher version(s) seen in Batman Forever <\/i>and Batman & Robin<\/i> \u2013 a promotional shirt from Forever <\/i>is thrown around as a make-up gift from Ingrid to Dan to make up for borrowing (and trashing) his truck, and even his business card is in the pointy block font made famous by those particular movies. Dan\u2019s a Batfan of the highest order, writing Batman fan screenplays and hosting them in his apartment. In lesser hands, such an affectation would make Dan Pinto a one-dimensional goof, but instead it makes him incredibly endearing. (It helps that Jackson himself apparently shares Dan\u2019s love for the Caped Crusader<\/span><\/a>, making his fandom seem even more authentic.) Even his love for the version of Batman most people feel comfortable dismissing speaks volumes to Dan\u2019s identification with misfits and outsiders, and subsequently his attraction to the awkward, unconventional Ingrid.<\/span><\/p>\n Everything in Dan\u2019s life is informed by his dedication to the Dark Knight, something which sneakily offers thematic counterpoint to Ingrid\u2019s own quest for identity. In her obsession with the Taylor Sloane crowd, Ingrid dyes her hair to match Taylor\u2019s, adopts her sense of fashion and taste, and generally apes her personality to transform herself into the kind of successful, beautiful person Taylor presents herself to be. Dan obsesses similarly over Batman, but mostly because of how similar they already are to each other: on a date, Dan admits to Ingrid that, like Bruce Wayne, he\u2019s an orphan, and felt that if Batman could rise above that to become something amazing, so can he. (Never mind the millions of dollars Bruce Wayne had to work with, but we\u2019ll let that slide.) It\u2019s an adorably relatable detail to Dan\u2019s fandom that fleshes him out instead of reducing him to a nerdy caricature.<\/span><\/p>\n On top of his lack of pretension and his admirable enthusiasm, Dan is just a joy to be around. Jackson\u2019s laid-back performance goes a long way to making Dan lovable and inviting to watch, and it\u2019s unsurprising that he\u2019s inherited his father\u2019s pitch-perfect comic timing. Nowhere is this more evident than when Dan blows up in Ingrid\u2019s face after she lets him down by blowing off his reading (and stealing his truck) to spend time with Taylor: \u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be Catwoman, but you\u2019re nothing but Two-Face!\u201d he earnestly shouts at her. Later, during a curiously steamy sex scene where Ingrid gamely performs Catwoman role-play for Dan, he murmurs a line we\u2019ll all permanently work into our sexual playbook: \u201cTell me Gotham needs me, baby.\u201d Even when not relating his life to Batman, Dan\u2019s patience and concern for Ingrid is heartwarming, even when the obsessive Ingrid can\u2019t see or return it. <\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s a shame the film is a tragedy, because that means we have to spend most of Ingrid<\/i>\u2019s runtime mentally shouting at the screen: \u201cWhy she won\u2019t just accept Dan, he\u2019s basically perfect!\u201d<\/i> In a film preoccupied with taking potshots at Instagram millennials who feign profundity and style for likes and follows, the thoroughly down-to-earth Dan Pinto is Ingrid Goes West<\/i>\u2019s secret weapon, and one of the most refreshing movie characters this year. From his warm face to his low-key sense of fashion (Lakers jerseys, simple gold chains) to his adorable love for his favorite superhero, what\u2019s not to like? Dan Pinto may not be the hero Ingrid <\/i>deserves, but he\u2019s the one we need right now.<\/span><\/p>\n
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