As of 2024, there are somewhere in the neighborhood of 8.2 billion human beings on this planet. That’s a lot of us. A lot of possibilities for conflict, a lot of chances for misunderstanding, and a lot of opportunities to connect. But it’s been my experience that the majority of the meaningful connections we make in life are random.

Family connections aren’t random. The same goes for school, and some people carry cherished memories they share with people from childhood. Not so much for me. I had almost nothing in common with the people I knew in my childhood and teen years. Perhaps those people are mostly decent, perhaps not, but I turned my back on the vast majority of them after graduation and never looked back. 

Friendships, and more particularly, romance, tends to originate in some of the weirdest ways possible. I’ve been married for nearly twenty-five years,* and I met my wife through a combination of a former acquaintance genuinely trying to help my romantic life and an extinction event-level failure of a first date.** These things can’t be predicted, and that’s one of the themes of the new romance Step Back, Doors Closing. The person you pass by may remain a stranger, or they may become the most important person in your life.

We first meet Julisa (Carmen Berkeley) as she lands in Washington D.C. for a conference. She’s done with the inconsiderate jerk she’s stuck next to on the plane, and all she wants is to meet up with her friend Sierra (Michelle Macedo) and deal with her jet lag. Unfortunately, one dropped iPhone in a toilet later, Julisa has no way to contact Sierra.

We also meet Ryan (Reilly Walters), who’s coming back home to D.C. from a funeral. It’s not the only loss he’s suffered. He needs to re-calibrate, and he has plans to meet up with a friend. Unfortunately, at almost the last minute, his friend abruptly cancels those plans. Ryan understands, doesn’t he? That’s the problem, he does.

Julisa and Ryan get on the Metro to plan their next moves. The plans immediately change when they start talking. To be clear, they don’t have a meet cute as such, nor are they swept away immediately by gale force romantic yearning. But there’s no denying that there’s a spark between them, and they decide to see where it goes. 

For twenty-four hours, Ryan plays D.C. tour guide to Julisa – sort of. While they do stroll through museums, marvel at the Lincoln Memorial, and see blooming cherry blossoms, there’s more. They meet Ryan’s friend Kesang (Ashley Romans), who clocks their attraction, perhaps faster than they do. They talk, share, and wonder if they have a future together, or if it’s confined to a handful of moments.

Step Back, Doors Closing is the debut feature of Carter Ward. He spent time as a production assistant on a number of films, and he’s obviously learned much. Ward’s first film is handsomely shot and edited, and his decision to shoot on location in Washington D.C. was a wise one. It creates a real sense of place and grounds the characters, as opposed to having actors walk through an anonymous Canadian city standing in for New York. He’s also made a film that feels like a 2025 reaction to Before Sunrise, in which a pair of star-crossed lovers amble through a metropolis and ponder their future, or if they have one together. That film, as much as it’s become a classic, is also very much a product of the 90s. This film feels like a contemporary update in the best possible way.

As the screenwriter, Ward is perceptive when it comes to his characters. He teases out information through organic conversations, the kind you could imagine yourself having in a too-loud bar or along a silent D.C. street. It’s the ideal version of “show, don’t tell.” Their behavior, whether it’s expressed verbally or non-verbally, tells us everything. At times they’re hopeful, realistic, humorous, petty, or pensive, all in ways that are true to the characters. I also appreciated the tone of Ward’s script. He takes romance seriously, knows it’s a fragile thing, especially in the early stages. The right words or movements can cause it to become harder than steel. The wrong comments or decisions will make it evaporate like morning dew.

This film isn’t a rom-com, and while there are undercurrents of conflict, nobody screams at one another and there are no dopey misunderstandings. This is a romance, a tentative one at times, and the only way it works is with the right actors. Luckily the casting is spot on here. As Julisa, Carmen Berkeley sells apprehension very well. Her plan upon arrival blew up, she’s thinking about dropping out of grad school, and she’s not terribly experienced with relationships. It’s understandable, and slowly but surely, Ryan helps her to relax. She’s partnered well with Reilly Walters. His Ryan is charming and witty, and it’s partially used as a shield. Behind it, the real Ryan is wounded and vulnerable, perhaps a little too much, and Julisa is a kind of healing balm for him. The supporting cast is strong, and I particularly liked Mershad Torabi as an inspirational Uber driver, and Michelle Macedo as the effortlessly funny Sierra.

If there’s one thing that Step Back, Doors Closing reminds us it’s the idea that our strongest connections can come out of nowhere. It’s a smart, sweet, perceptive indie film that deserves to be seen.

*I’m just as surprised as you are.

**Not with my wife. It was entirely a whole thing.

Tim Brennan Movie Critic

Tim has been alarmingly enthusiastic about movies ever since childhood. He grew up in Boulder and, foolishly, left Colorado to study Communications in Washington State. Making matters worse, he moved to Connecticut after meeting his too-good-for-him wife. Drawn by the Rockies and a mild climate, he triumphantly returned and settled down back in Boulder County. He's written numerous screenplays, loves hiking, and embarrassed himself in front of Samuel L. Jackson. True story.