Comedy
Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar
When you watch Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, a new buddy comedy written and starring Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, you start associating other movies with it. “This is Kristen Wiig’s Austin Powers”, “This is Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo’s take on A Night at the Roxbury”, “In fact, this is the best Saturday Night Live movie that never was an SNL skit in the first place!”. The viewer does this because…
First Blush
Written and directed by Victor Neumark, First Blush is the story of a young married couple, Nena (Rachel Alig) and Drew (Ryan Caraway), who decide to open up their relationship after they meet a beautiful young actress named Olivia (Kate Beecroft). For a feature film debut, First Blush is passable and hints at Neumark’s talent for exploring complex interpersonal dynamics. However, as a depiction of polyamory, it misses the mark.
Baby Done
As much as I’m glad pro-choice movies are becoming more frequent in the mainstream eye, it’s refreshing to watch a movie about a couple who are thrilled to be expecting a baby. That nice feeling washed over me while watching Curtis Vowell’s humble comedy Baby Done, which plays as a millennial’s version of This Is 40 that’s just as funny with as many rough edges.
Promising Young Woman
Promising Young Woman is a provocative call to arms that’s both committed to its cause and impossibly funny. It’s one hell of a feature-length debut from writer/director Emerald Fennell, who has previously acted on the UK’s Call the Midwife and Netflix’s The Crown, as well as wrote for AMC’s Killing Eve.
Love, Weddings & Other Disasters
Romantic comedies can get away with just about any sort of off-the-wall, clichéd nonsense as long as the film sports genuine charisma. The power of uplifting attitudes and chemistry can help viewers go along with unusual plots and characters, and also convince the audience to root for silly love stories.
Antarctica
By: Jolie Featherstone Imbued with dry wit and heaps of quirk, Keith Bearden’s high school-outsider dramedy Antarctica leans into absurdist humour to highlight the pressures and barriers teenage girls are facing today.
Saint Frances
We’ve all seen a movie that pairs an uncomfortable adult with a precocious child, and usually the humour stems from their awkwardness that develops into an endearing dynamic as their chemistry develops. Saint Frances is no different, and about halfway through the movie I thought I had Alex Thompson’s film figured out. Little did I know that the film was quietly providing the groundwork for inspiring feministic themes that would elevate the material above its…
Chick Fight
I’ll be frank: Chick Fight is a disappointment. With a cast that boasts big names like Alec Baldwin, Fortune Feimster, and Bella Thorne, I expected more from this female-lead action-comedy.
The Climb
By: Trevor Chartrand Based on a short film of the same name, The Climb was written and performed by Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin. Covino also directed the film, which chronicles the life and times of a dysfunctional friendship over the course of many years. In the film, Kyle (Marvin) and Mike (Covino) are long-time best friends who slowly drift apart – and then back together again – after Mike admits to sleeping with…