Brittany Runs A Marathon: Goes The Distance!

This is award-winning playwright Writer/Director Paul Downs Colaizzo's first feature film, and it's a winner too!  The movie is based on the true story of Colaizzo's close friend, Brittany, who dug deep and turned her self-destructive life around. Brittany (as played by Jillian Bell) is an obese party-girl who goes out clubbing most nights with her roommate, Gretchen (Alice Lee).  She's going nowhere, slowly.  Brittany has only a part-time job and is in considerable debt.  Her childhood was horrific, and she was essentially raised by her sister and brother-in-law, so her low self-esteem, insecurities, self-sabotaging behavior, and emotional struggles are understandable.  Brittany sees a physician to try to get a prescription for Adderall and learns that she has very high blood pressure and that she's about 50 pounds overweight.  If she doesn't change her diet and start exercising, she will have very serious health problems in a few years. Encouraged by a neighbor, Catherine (Michaela Watkins), for whom she has ambivalent feelings, Brittany joins a running group and meets Seth (Micah Stock).  She also gets another job house-sitting and meets the night shift house-sitter, Jern (Utkarsh Ambudkar).  Brittany gets considerable emotional support from them as she tries to transform herself, but she is fearful of intimacy and dependency, so she often pushes them away through hostility. Jillian Bell is perfect in the role, handling the comedic and serious aspects of the film with ease.  The supporting cast is also excellent.  The movie is very funny and has a feel-good message about the resilience of the human spirit and friendship.  It will work fine as a rental, but it's good enough to see now on the BS.  To get into the spirit of the film, put on your cross-trainers and jog to the theater!