"It's like a musical couch," one character comments, shifting positions on a sofa with two others, nicely summing up the narrative thrust of the wispy but radiant Hannah Takes the Stairs. The line also unwittingly references the cinematic cross-pollination taking place amongst the real-life troupe of assorted filmmakers and artists featured in Hannah (though Joe Swanberg directs, eight names share the byline). Programmed as part of a two-week festival entitled "The New Talkies: Generation DIY" at downtown Manhattan's IFC Center--seemingly in direct response to an article published in Filmmaker magazine's spring issue exploring the freshly dubbed "mumblecore" movement--"Hannah" epitomizes this indie strain with its naked sincerity, neophyte/nonprofessional actors, near-plotless trajectory borne of improvisation, and nondescript visual style that clears the way for an emphasis on the miniscule moments that constitute coming-of-age in the lives of privileged (no one seems to work much, or need to) post-collegiate twentysomethings.

Click here to read the rest of Kristi Mitsuda's review of Hannah Takes the Stairs.