In this ensemble indie drama, the arrival of a young female guest gradually discombobulates a funky but well-to-do Los Angeles family. Martine (Olivia Thirlby) is a flirty filmmaker from New York who, through a loose social connection, moves into Julie and Peter's home. Peter (John Krasinski), a sound designer, offers to help Martine score her short film. (It's an inscrutable close-up of bugs, naturally.)
But he and Martine get flirty, Julie (Rosemarie Dewitt) notices, and soon enough, the natural order of the house is disrupted. Other spin-off crises include: Julie's relationship with a patient (she's a therapist); her tween daughter's budding relationships; and Peter's assistant's interest in Martine.
Nobody Walks is a slow-burn roundelay directed by Ry Russo-Young (who co-wrote the script with Girls' Lena Dunham). The material is well trod — rich, self-absorbed arty types stumbling through their infidelities — and often feels padded. Most of the actors do good work, and that's enough to keep viewers mildly entertained, but ultimately Nobody Walks is rather aimless.
The title is a play on both the literal and the figurative. Of course, everybody drives a car in L.A., and Martine, who doesn't drive, is compromised by that inability, having to rely on rides from guys she flirts with. And Martine's presence causes all the other characters to react, often in ill-advised fashion. Thus, nobody walks — nobody escapes the consequences of the domestic disorder wrought by Martine's visit. But you already knew that.
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