“Oh, and I don’t know
I don’t know what he’s after
But he’s so beautiful
Such a beautiful disaster
And if I could hold on
Through the tears and the laughter
Would it be beautiful
Or just a beautiful disaster?”– “Beautiful Disaster” from Kelly Clarkson.
Love is an absolute gamble. Doesn’t matter if it’s with yourself, with someone else, or with a gaggle — you’re taking a risk on breaking your heart, your trust, and/or sense of self. It hurts like nothing else when heartbreak arises, whether you see it coming or not, but the blindsiding might be the worst of the two. What reality does one construct to protect themselves when that happens? Who gets the blame? How do we reconcile what was with what is? Co-directed, co-written, and co-starring Mechi Lakatos (The Weight of a Dog) and Lucy Sandler (The Weight of a Dog), dramedy Danny Is My Boyfriend, having its west coast premiere in the Narrative Features section of Slamdance 2026, directly incorporates these questions when infidelity is discovered and the victims try to process it. Shot with only an outline so as to encourage improvisation and being in the moment, Lakatos and Sandler are mesmerizing as two betrayed women whose entire identities are shattered and whose concepts of justice veer into the absurd.
L-R: Lucy Sandler, Maleah Goldberg, and Mechi Lakatos in DANNY IS MY BOYFRIEND. Photo courtesy of the filmmakers.
On the same day that Mechi (Lakatos) says goodbye to her boyfriend as he leaves town for a few days, she bumps into Lucy (Sandler) who’s babysitting her boyfriend Danny’s (Danny Wood) dog, Paul Wall. Except Lucy isn’t babysitting Mechi’s boyfriend’s dog, Paul Wall, Lucy’s babysitting *her* boyfriend Danny’s dog, Paul Wall. Pulling in friends from their respective sides, the two try to figure out what to do with this information and whether their ire is directed at Danny, themselves, or love itself.
Danny Is My Boyfriend (DIMB) rises and falls through its lo-fi execution. Shot without a script, it’s up to the actors to figure out there way to the truth of each scene while moving the film forward to the next significant beat. It’s impressive how in one moment the lack of polish makes the entirety of DIMB the most honest representation of a breaking relationship through the chaotic conversations and quixotic reactions of the characters, while also feeling so far from reality that the rules of the film are on the verge of breaking. Some of this appears by design as, in truth, reality is far more bizarre and strange and beautiful and horrible than any script would allow. One of the guardrails that ensures that the more extreme choices/reactions are allowable by the rules of the film is the characterizations of both Mechi and Lucy, brought to life with incredible delicacy and complexity by the lead performers. Each one is just a little broken who’s put too much of themselves and their worth into the relationship with Danny, thereby necessitating that both fight each other, then themselves, before they can reconcile with the true villain of the film. The performances by Lakatos and Sandler both convey their respective insecurities, the “but their love can fix me” energy that the incomplete place onto others. It shines through the way Sandler channels Lucy’s anger at Danny’s betrayal through a single monologue wherein she practices laying into him after repeatedly failing to do so via voice text; a clear attempt to pump herself up for confrontation. Likewise, Lakatos conveys Mechi’s awkwardness through a quiet and internal physical performance, using her body to convey discomfort, disquiet, and the conflicting feeling of self-worth. The pair have great chemistry as an icy-hot odd couple, each frustrated by the betrayal, yet struggling to reconcile the end of a relationship they thought was working.
Brooke Smith in DANNY IS MY BOYFRIEND. Photo courtesy of the filmmakers.
Even if the little bit of dialogue didn’t drop details like Mechi’s six-year relationship with Danny (versus Lucy’s four months), the way in which the two characters are framed by the interactions with other characters in their lives (the teenager Mechi babysits vs. Lucy’s narcissistic mother and brother) demonstrates two people without a healthy support system by which they can exist with confidence. For Mechi, it’s through Kate (Kate Heffernan), the teenager she looks after who hasn’t yet developed a sense of empathy and will openly mock Lucy with her friends (while Lucy’s just in another room) before asking for a ride. For Lucy, it’s her mother calling, screaming in desperation of help, only to be perfectly fine when Lucy arrives, complaining that Lucy took too long to get to her. If one judges a person by the company they keep, the fact that Mechi is shown only with the people she works for and Lucy surrounded by the dysfunctional, the audience quickly comes to understand that these are (for better or worse) broken individuals who would be easy prey for a shitbag boyfriend.
Outside of the absent script and focus on natural performances, the look of the film enables DIMB to stand out from traditional narratives. As though shot on digital video (DV), cinematographer Jake Wolfert (The Trick; Mirage) infuses the film with a high-grain, sometimes burnt-image style that gives the audience the sensation of watching, not a cinéma vérité doc, but a homemade movie made by friends. This is, of course, somewhat the truth given the relationship of Sandler and Lakatos and the fact that all the characters are identified by their own names; and, through this mumblecore style (ex. Funny Ha Ha (2002); Baghead (2008); Daddy Longlegs (2009); Frances Ha (2009)), the sensation is only amplified. It’s probably why the film’s eventual sticking point is so frustrating because DIMB is like watching your friends flounder and fuck up despite one’s best hopes. Yet, the stupid things that they do — the destruction of Danny’s apartment (and secret cleaning), making poor Paul Wall a conspirator, and the honeypot plan — make a great deal of sense when viewed through the lens of an immature person doing their best to sabotage their plans because facing reality hurts too much. All of which is supported by the DV look and total improvisational style.
L-R: Lucy Sandler and Mechi Lakatos in DANNY IS MY BOYFRIEND. Photo courtesy of the filmmakers.
Danny Is My Boyfriend is, without a doubt, going to be an acquired taste, but there’s no doubting the performances from the leads are what hold it together or the way they capture the complexity of heartbreak, the honest way in which each performer presents denial and acceptance, the way each performer channels the struggles in that liminal space between couplehood and singledom, especially in the face of infidelity. When someone has convinced themselves that the relationship they’re in is worth fighting for, they will truly do outrageous things because they truly believe that it makes sense to do so. This doesn’t exactly fuel the whole of DIMB, but it does power the comedy and enables the drama that flows throughout. In the end, at some point, we find ourselves struck by a beautiful disaster — what matters is whether or not we can recognize it and breakaway.
Screened during Slamdance Film Festival 2026.
For more information, head to the official Slamdance Film Festival Danny Is My Boyfriend webpage.
Final Score: 3.5 out of 5.
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Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
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