The Great New Wonderful

The Great New Wonderful is a series of vignettes of incidents taking place concurrently around Manhattan. The only other thing linking the incidents is the month in which they occur: September 2002. Recurring themes include frustration and sugar. The vignettes include: • An accountant (Jim Gaffigan) undergoing a therapy session in the office of a passive-aggressive psychologist (Tony Shalhoub). • Two immigrants from India on security detail for a visiting dignitary. • An ambitious pastry chef (Maggie Gyllenhaal) preparing a professional pitch that she hopes will make her the reigning doyenne of New York's competitive cake scene. • A Brooklyn housewife (Olympia Dukakis) fixes her husband's dinner and then sits at the kitchen table making collages out of old magazines while her husband sits on the balcony, smoking a cigarette. • Allison & David Burbage (Judy Greer & Tom McCarthy) struggle to keep their marriage together while coping with their increasingly difficult and strangely self-possessed 10-year-old son. ==Cast==

• Olympia Dukakis as Judy Hillerman • Jim Gaffigan as Sandie • Judy Greer as Allison Burbage • Maggie Gyllenhaal as Emme Keeler • Tom McCarthy as David Burbage • Sharat Saxena as Satish • Naseeruddin Shah as Avi • Tony Shalhoub as Dr. Trabulous • Edie Falco as Safarah Polsky • Stephen Colbert as Mr. Peersall • Jim Parsons as Justin • Seth Gilliam as Clayton • Will Arnett as Danny Keeler • Tony Kushner as Himself • Ari Graynor as Lisa Krindel • Julie Dretzin as Julie Driscoll • Rosemarie DeWitt as Debbie • Tonye Patano as Shirley • Alex McCord as Jessilyn • Dick Latessa as Jerry Binder • Sam Catlin as Councilman Blenick • Marilyn Chris as Phyllis • Anita Gillette as Lainie • David Costabile as Vending Machine Guy • Meredith Ostrom as Anita • Fred Burrell as Wexler Whitehead ==Reception==

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 73% based on 41 reviews, and an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Set in post-9/11 New York, this largely evocative dramedy interweaves the stories of five disconnected individuals who share an unspoken emotional malaise that shadows their attempts at returning to normal life." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 57 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". ==References==