Just as in KISSING JESSICA STEIN, IRA & ABBY is an affectionate ode to love among neurotic New Yorkers. Actress Jennifer Westfeldt co-wrote the script for the 2002 film KISSING JESSICA STEIN, and she has penned another slightly skewed romantic comedy with this enjoyable film. A dozen years of analysis aren't enough to rid Ira (Chris Messina, SIX FEET UNDER) of all his neuroses, and his on-again, off-again relationship with his girlfriend isn't doing anything to help matters. A desire for change sends him to the nearest gym, where he meets easygoing Abby (Westfeldt, NOTES FROM THE UNDERBELLY). The two immediately click, and she unexpectedly proposes marriage and he--even more unexpectedly--agrees. Their coupling seems ideal until Ira discovers that he's her third husband, and his fears begin to take over their relationship.

Ira and Abby inhabit Woody Allen's New York: a city filled with neurotic people, their analysts, and the those who love them. Westfeldt's characters might seem familiar to fans of Allen's light comedies, but everyone in the talented cast crafts a unique person for his or her role. Though Westfeldt and Messina are great as the couple of the title, the highest praise should go to the four actors who play their parents: Fred Willard, Frances Conroy, Judith Light, and Robert Klein. Actor-comedian Klein (HOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS) is especially hilarious as the Ira's father, a droll analyst who is quick to remind Ira--and everyone else--that marriage isn't an easy task. Manhattan's Upper West Side also plays a starring role in the film, and the picturesque neighborhood seems the perfect place for falling in and out of love for these New Yorkers.