This was a genuinely funny (some great laugh out loud moments), light and frothy rom-com that would have been an excellent Summer escapist film. But now, as we are all more or less stuck in quarantine, this film has added a layer of ironic realism to its existentialism leanings. Thankfully, philosophy and quantum physics were not its priority, instead its focus was on the fantastic chemistry between its two lead - Andy Samberg (who was the right amount of cringiness here) and Cristin Milioti (she of the wide-eyed, not-so manic-pixie foil).
Written by Andy Siara and Directed by Max Barbakow, this was a trim and unfussy 90 minutes film that held your attention from the beginning to the end. But to me, I wished it ended 2 minutes earlier, that would have been perfect. The epilogue and the mid-credits scene kinda lost a bit of the magic spelled by the preceding 88. Nonetheless, kudos to Barbakow for daftly balancing comedy, romance and existentialism without nary missing a beat. The tonal shifts from fun to dread to wonder to drama to contemplative to hopeful and back to fun again were done very well.
Samberg - reminiscence of Jesse Eisenberg from Zombieland - was a great casting choice. He has the earnesty and sincerity that made him relatable, and also a great timing for comedy (see Brooklyn Nine-Nine). Although, thankfully, Barbakow managed to rein him an we barely had much slapstick schtick or cringey expressions of frat-humour.
Milioti was a great foil for Samberg, and her journey was a delight to follow. Her transformation through the stages of grief was extremely fun especially as she worked through her denial and anger before arriving at acceptance.
J.K. Simmons played a small but pivotal role and it is hard to see any other actor inhabit this role. Maybe Christopher Walken? Or Sir Ian McKellen? You get the type.
My only real gripe was the ending. I wonder if the studios had anything to do with it or was it Siara's, or Barbakow's, plan all along.
Another gripe will be the lack of representation in the film. We have the one token Black actor and the one token Asian guy. It was also a definite fail on the Bechdel Test. And the LGBTQ angle was played for laughs. Gotta work harder, Hollywood.
Nonetheless, this was a great 90 minutes escapism. It brought the laughs and the awwww-shucks, and could be a long shot for an Original Screenplay nomination.
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