Movie Breakdown: A Simple Favor

Pre-Screening Stance:

I like Paul Feig.  He had a total misstep with Ghostbusters: Answer The Call, but otherwise his films have been solid (with Bridesmaids being his one great effort).  A Simple Favor has somewhat of a quasi-Lifetime feel to it, but I can at least appreciate him trying something new.  Hopefully it’s a winner.

Post-Screening Ramble:

You ever get in the middle of something and realize that it may not be for you?  This was me during the screening for A Simple Favor.  I happened to get seated near quite a few women, and they all LOVED this movie.  They were constantly cheering and fist pumping.  Hell, the girl next to me started dancing in her seat as soon as the credits hit the screen, and she wasn’t even being encouraged by her pals.  She was just so full of energy and excitement that she had to immediately shimmy it out.  I, however, found A Simply Favor to be a bit of a letdown.

The first chunk of the film actually works pretty well.  There’s Stephanie (Anna Kendrick), a widowed mom who spends her days super-providing for her son and running a vlog, and then there’s Emily (Blake Lively), a married woman without enough time for her kid due to her high profile day job.  They have no reason to be friends, but with little boys who are buddies and Stephanie’s willingness to jump in when Emily can’t, they end up being close.  Or at least that’s what Stephanie thinks, but she quickly realizes she’s mistaken when Emily goes missing and nothing about her seems to be on the up and up.  As I mentioned, this is all pretty good stuff, with the highlight being the film’s tone.  I found it to be similar to Get Out, in that it’s funny but the laughs are uncomfortable and there’s an underlying ominous vibe to everything.  You just know something weird is going to hit and your brain can’t help but conjure up crazy theories.  It’s the reveal though that pulled this film apart for me.  Emily’s actual story isn’t all that interesting or surprising, and to make things worse it feels like it takes hours to find out what’s really going on.  Simply put, writer/director Paul Feig gets A Simple Favor off the ground nicely but ultimately he botches the landing.

In no way did I hate A Simple Favor, but I do think it has a weak back half and an overall low-rent feel.  As for all the ladies that were around me during my screening, I’m really not sure what they adored about the film.  Maybe it was just fun to see two strong, savvy female characters go toe-to-toe?  Either way, I think you’ll either really love it or just find it to be OK.

One Last Thought:

Here’s something useless for you.  There’s a joke in this movie that’s lifted right out of Weeds.  As it turns out, Feig directed a few episodes of the show.  Specifically, he directed episodes seven and 13 in season three, and this particular joke is in episode five of that same season.  Coincidence?  I doubt it!