Underground Film Journal

Posted In » Online Cinema

Feature Film Online: Modern Love Is Automatic

By Mike Everleth ⋅ August 12, 2012

An ennui-filled nurse attempts to spice up her life by becoming a dominatrix in Zach Clark‘s wickedly twisted feature-length comedy Modern Love Is Automatic, which has recently been uploaded in full online. Watch it embedded above, but be forewarned, it is definitely NSFW or to watch with children around.

Modern Love Is Automatic roared across the underground film festival a few years ago, racking up numerous awards at the at the Arizona, Atlanta, Melbourne and Boston Underground Film Festivals. In fact, we loved it ourselves so much we named it runner up to the Underground Film Journal’s 2009 Movie of the Year, in a very tight race.

Dominatrix makes her subject clean a hotel bathroom

There’s so much to love about the film from Clark’s colorful and uniquely deadpan filmmaking style to star Melodie Sisk’s pitch-perfect bored housewife performance to Maggie Ross’ hilarious scene-stealing turn as an aspiring model who works in the world’s weirdest mattress store. Plus, the smart script is filled with some terrific understated flourishes, such as the slow escalation of Ross’ boyfriend’s infatuation with the aloof Sisk.

With Modern Love Is Automatic, Clark instantly proved he was a hot new talent to watch in the indie comedy film world, which he capitalized on in his follow-up film, the “bad girls go wrong” comedy Vacation!, now available on DVD.

Clark is currently working on the highly anticipated Christmas movie White Reindeer.

Modern Love Is Automatic photo gallery: