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BitterSweet

By Alan Ng | January 27, 2025

Steve Martini’s insane/romantic comedy, BitterSweet, shows the lengths a man with high-functioning autism will go to save his family and true love. Steve Martini stars as Sam, a man caught in a massive legal mess. By day, Sam is a hapless programmer living with his girlfriend, Gigi (Gabriela Kulaif), and their infant son. Due to his autism, Sam is easily distracted and forgets to pay essential bills, like gas and the internet. As his financial problems come to a head, Gigi is forced to kick Sam out of her home, leading to a fight and lovemaking session in the backyard.

Unfortunately, the neighbors misinterpret the duo’s passion and call the police. Because of Gigi’s heavy accent, the police believe this is a domestic abuse situation and haul Sam off to jail. Now that the public defender’s office and child protective services are involved, Sam tries in vain to explain what happened. For his trouble, he’s slapped with a restraining order until he attends anger management classes. For Sam, trying to explain his autism and how his mind moves at a million miles per second only works against him in court. Now, Sam is forced to live in his car, as any reasonable action could jeopardize his chances of seeing his son walk for the first time. Drastic measures must be taken.

BitterSweet uses hard-hitting satire to show us the plight of many good, yet imperfect, parents who run through the legal system—separating parents from children while at the same time living with the stigma that you’re a terrible parent in the eyes of the law. As extreme as Sam’s situation is, these stories are real and surreal. As a parent, the idea of being separated from my child is the worst torture you can place on a parent.

“…the lengths a man with high-functioning autism will go to save his family and true love.”

I get it. The system is complex, and there are bad parents out there. It’s easy to sympathize with parents who are misunderstood by a system set to protect the safety of all children. The question becomes whether the “better safe than sorry” mentality should be the default setting. I am not saying we should do away with the system, but we need to constantly ask questions and give parents the benefit of the doubt.

As the beginning of the film points out, we’re also looking at a parent with high-functioning autism. While each case of autism is unique, we need a bit more empathy and understanding for adults and parents. BitterSweet creates empathy and understanding for people with Autism, but at times, the comedy and satire lessen our empathy for Sam, and the film becomes a living, breathing example of Murphy’s Law, where everything that can go wrong will go wrong.

The film’s tone is reminiscent of 80s and 90s comedies. The story moves fast and is manic. The acting can get stilted at time, but a fun ride nonetheless.

In the end, Steve Martini gives a high-powered, high-energy performance that’s hard to ignore as Bittersweet takes us into the mind of an adult with Autism. The quick edits and shifting narratives in Sam’s mind place us in the shoes of someone navigating the high-stress nature of living day to day.

Bittersweet (2024)

Directed and Written: Steve Martini

Starring: Steve Martini, Gabriela Kulaif, etc.

Movie score: 6.5/10

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"…place us in the shoes of someone navigating the high-stress nature of living day to day."

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