A difficult film to digest, Alex Ross Perry’s sophomore feature, The Color Wheel, follows quasi-estranged brother and sister duo, Colin and JR, as they embark on a road-trip to fetch JR’s stuff from her ex-professor-turned-lover’s apartment. The Brooklyn-based Perry casts himself as Colin, a sad Michael Cera-esque character who begs his girlfriend for sex, while the film’s co-writer, Carlen Altman, plays JR, a self-centered dim-bulbed aspiring news-anchor. Containing a string of verbal sparring matches, the film’s loathsome characters burrow into our consciousness through their offhand quips and utter desperation. If you call yourself a fan of art-house cinema, this gritty and unsettling B&W pic is required viewing.

The Color Wheel is a Cinema Conservancy release.

(Originally appeared on Flavorpill.com in May 2012)