Murder Mystery (2019)

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) probably being the only exception — I haven't seen his entire filmography —, Adam Sandler movies are usually downright terrible. It's pretty much the same when it comes to Jennifer Aniston; there are some exceptions here and there but most of her films are just not that good. Because of this, it didn't seem like a particularly good idea to spend my free Friday morning to watch Netflix's latest original, Murder Mystery, which stars both. Surprisingly, the film exceeded my expectations as it is a quite enjoyable combination of comedy, mystery and romance. 

Written by Zodiac's screenwriter James Vanderbilt, the story follows a married couple, Nick (Adam Sandler) and Audrey Spitz (Jennifer Aniston), living a rather bland life in New York. Nick is a police officer who has yet again failed the detective exam and keeps lying to his wife about it; Audrey is a hairdresser who just wants more romance in her life. On their 15th anniversary, with hearing her speak on it, Nick finally decides to take her on a European vacation, which he owed her since their honeymoon. 

However, while on the plane, Audrey befriends a charming playboy, Charles Cavendish (Luke Evans), who invites them both to a luxurious yacht party in Monaco hosted by tycoon Malcolm Quince (Terence Stamp). When Quince is murdered, Nick and Audrey become the prime suspects in the investigation conducted by French Inspector Laurent Delacroix (Dany Boon), so they start their own investigation to find the real murderer.

If you are willing to close an eye on the nonsense dynamic that makes the story start, the French Inspector suspecting of Nick and Audrey for no reason whatsoever other than kicking off the couple's European adventure, the story of Murder Mystery is actually quite enjoyable and entertaining, and the element of mystery keeps it engaging from beginning to end. Sure, it often falls in familiar territory as what follows is a manhunt, other murders — at some point, as the suspects were murdered one by one, I thought Vanderbilt went for a And There There Were None finale —, and the typical, climatic action flick car chase, but it's nevertheless enjoyable. 

The characters don't have a lot of characterization and development — they are pretty one-dimensional, to be honest — but they fit the actors very well. Adam Sandler is given just the right material for him, the juvenile humour he does, kind of, wonders with, and a dramatic touch to keep his performance more enjoyable. Jennifer Aniston also gives an enjoyable performance as the mystery novel obsessed Audrey and steals the show every time she is on screen. There's very nice chemistry between them which makes Sandler yet again having a romantic interest way more attractive than he feel genuine. Nice support comes from Luke Evans as a suave playboy and Gemma Arterton as a vamp actress. 

As for the comedy, it's a bit of a hit and miss. While the film certainly has its moments, most of which are very silly and yet funny, Murder Mystery is not one of those comedies that delivers a joke after another, and it's not always effective when it delivers them as some of the jokes fall flat. However, it must be said that the humour is never offensive as it tends to be in most comedies nowadays, even with many ethnicities represented. Also, when the comedy falls flat, the mystery and romance keep the film afloat and flowing at a steady pace. 

Ultimately, Murder Mystery won't be the comedy of the year, nor Netflix's best original — hopefully — but it's a solid comedy that it's worth checking out. 

Dumplin' (2018)

With a few exceptions —Annihilation and Apostle are the only I can think of right now— Netflix originals have been quite disappointing this year —Outlaw King, in particular— so I wasn't sure whether to give Dumplin' a chance or not, especially since there's Jennifer Aniston. But then some other blogger, I don't recall who, said it was fun so I gave it a try. 

The film follows Willowdean (Danielle MacDonald), the plus-size daughter of a former beauty queen, Rosie (Jennifer Aniston) who was raised by her Aunt Lucy (Hillary Begley). After an argument with her mother —Will accuses Rosie of being resentful of her for her looks, and Rosie insinuates that Lucy would still be alive if she had taken better care of herself— Will signs up for the Miss Teen Bluebonnet pageant, preseeded by her mother, as a protest which escalates when other misfits, Millie (Maddie Baillio) and Hannah (Bex Taylor-Klaus), follow her footsteps and sing up for the pageant. 

Plot-wise, the film isn't particularly strong as it is clichéd, cheesy and predictable —at least the beauty pageant ends in a plausible, realistic way—, and Will meets surprisingly few obstacles and the conflicts with the mother and best friend are resolved too easily. This isn't, however, important as the simple story is quite a charming and heartwarming one that delivers an important message of self-acceptance and self-love. 

The characters of Willowdean could have been more likeable though as she comes off as a kind of grumpy and boring girl with not much of a personality —her soon-to-become friend Millie is way more likeable and charming, and has more personality than her— which makes it difficult to believe that a guy like Luke Benward could throw himself at her, especially when Miss America is throwing herself at him. Danielle MacDonald does a really nice job though, and despite the poor writing Will ends up being sympathetic.

Netflix

The other characters too could have used more depth, to be honest. Aunt Lucy —not Paddington's sweet aunt— has a huge impact on Will's life and yet we know nothing about her. At some point, we learn that she frequented a Dolly Parton themed drag queen bar but there isn't any sort of explanations. Was Aunt Lucy a drag herself or is it just random? As for the drag characters, they are only used as comic relief and their struggles are acknowledge at all. 

The highlight of the movie easily is the soundtrack. Dolly Parton's songs are always a delight and really help to lift the film up.

Ultimately, Dumplin' could have used more depth —we can't really complain though, it's not like Anne Fletcher made masterpieces in the past—, but it still quite fun and entertaining, and delivers a nice message. 

The Switch (2010)

I wanted to watch The Switch about a month ago but somehow —I blame Patrick Wilson and the short title—I ended up watching The Ledge instead, which was quite the opposite of the light romantic comedy I was expecting to see. I double-checked this time and I was finally able to watch it. 

The film revolves around Wally (Jason Bateman), a neurotic man who has a hard time finding his soulmate, and his best friend Kassie (Jennifer Aniston), who decides to get artificially inseminated. Wally doesn't like the idea, mainly because he's in love with her though he hasn't realised it yet. At Kassie's insemination party, he gets drunk, he accidentally dumps the donor's (Patrick Wilson) sperm in the sink and decides to replace it with his own. He forgets completely about it, and Kassie leaves New York as she doesn't feel like it's the right place to raise a child. Seven years later, she comes back with her son Sebastian (Thomas Robinson) and Wally starts to notice striking resemblances between the boy and himself. In the meantime, Kassie becomes intimate with Roland, the sperm donor. 

Yes, the plot is lame and predictable, it's filled with holes and nonsense —my biggest issue, how are Wally and Kassie not together in the first place? It's clear right from the beginning that they are perfect for each other—, and the hurried ending is lazy writing at its best, the proof the writer was so done with it, he tried to end it as soon as he could. Or maybe he's just not a good writer. Either way, the story is quite engaging and I did end up rooting for Wally.

That may have something to do with the fact that I love Jason Bateman though. He yet again proves himself to be a wonderful leading man as he is oddly charming and has impeccable timing. The chemistry he has with Jennifer Aniston is great, which is why it doesn't make sense for them to not be together, but the chemistry he has with Thomas Robinson is even greater and makes their interaction very pleasant to watch. Aniston, on the other hand, isn't that good as she gives yet another bland, uncompelling comedic performance. Good thing the film focuses more on Bateman's character as opposed to hers.

Miramax Films

As for the comedy part, don't expect The Switch to make you laugh your ass off because it won't. It does, on the other hand, have that light and kind of heartwarming humour that puts a smile on your face from most of the film's running time. There still are a few laughs here and there —basically whenever Jeff Goldblum is on screen. Seriously, every single word that comes out of that man's mouth is funny.

Ultimately, while the writing is a mess, the film is fun to watch as it's humorous and occasionally touching. It's not the best romantic comedy out there, but it isn't the worst either, and it's definitely worth watching if you like Bateman or Goldblum.

Office Christmas Party (2016)

I have a soft spot for Jason Bateman so I don't care about how bad a movie sounds or how low it's rated, I'm gonna watch it anyway. I did pass Office Christmas Party though and kept putting it off for the past two years because I'm not much of a Christmas person and I had read some negative reviews and I was not in the mood for another crappy Christmas comedy. 

In this one, Clay Vanstone (T.J. Miller), the Chicago branch manager of IT sales company Zenotek, his Chief Technical of Technical Advancement, Josh Parker (Jason Bateman), and Tracey Hughes (Olivia Munn), his Chief of R&D, throw a big office Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client (Courtney B. Vance) so that they can save the branch and all of their employers and co-workers' jobs. 

The plot is very simple and predictable —actually, there's barely a plot. However, it's not very important as this is the kind of movie dudes like James Franco and Seth Rogen would make, a kind of movie that doesn't need a fancy plot to engage and entertain its audience because the interactions between the characters and, especially, their silly shenanigans do the trick.

In addition to the plot, Office Christmas Party also lacks solid characters as every single person in this film is shallow and underdeveloped not developed at all. Also, they do try too hard to be funny, and they talk too much about doing crazy things but rarely do them. However, some of them are quite memorable and fun and they are all women: an ultra-sensitive HR representative who is nowhere as depressing as Toby from The Office, and a bi-polar pimp.

Of course, the standouts are the two actresses who play those characters, Kate McKinnon as the HR representative —I didn't like her at all in The Spy Who Dumped Me, so she really surprised me in here—, and Jillian Bell as the pimp. Bateman, who yet again plays the nice guy who wants to try new things, isn't bad —actually, he nails the role. I didn't expect any less from him though—, and Jennifer Aniston does a good job playing the bitchy, uptight CEO/Clay's sister.

Paramount Pictures

The comedy is a hit and miss. Some jokes and gags are funny, some others make you wish you were deaf or blind. Also, there some gratuitous nudity that adds absolutely nothing, and it's definitely not funny.

Overall, Office Christmas Party isn't a terrible film, but it isn't a good one either. It's okay if you want something different than your typical, feel-good Christmas movie. But don't expect a masterpiece because this sure isn't one.

Friends with Money (2006)

Just like yesterday's film, Friends with Money too was mentioned by Steven from Surrender to the Void earlier this year for the meltdowns week of the Thursday Movie Picks series. And just like yesterday's film, it sounded interesting, specifically because of Frances McDormand's meltdown scene, and I decided to check it out. 

The film follows a group of four girlfriends: three of them, Franny (Joan Cusack), Christine (Catherine Keener) and Jane (Frances McDormand) are wealthy and married; the fourth, Olivia (Jennifer Aniston), is a single former teacher who now works as a maid. While Franny, Christine and Jane find themselves in various stages of marriage —Franny is very happy with her husband Matt (Greg Germann), Christine keeps fighting with her husband David (Jason Isaacs) over the silliest things and Jane is constantly angry as she's afraid her husband Aaron (Simon McBurney) may be gay—, Olivia struggles to find a good man. 

The plot to this film doesn't really go anywhere. There's barely a plot, actually, as all the movie does is depicting the desperately sad marriages/love lives of four rich, spoiled women. Also, there are many elements —the three couples having kids, for instance— that could have been easily left out and absolutely nothing would have changed as they have no impact whatsoever on the story. Despite this, the story is compelling because the issues these women are facing are real, whether it's money related or dealing with the world in general. And it is so engaging I didn't want it to end —I was happy with the ending but at the same time I was unhappy with it because that meant I couldn't follow the lives of these women anymore.

Which is crazy considering that the characters don't have a lot of depth, lack development and only have a glimpse of characterization. We are not given any backstory either and because of it, it's impossible to figure out why the four women became friends in the first place as it doesn't seem like they have anything in common —at some point one of the women tells another that if they were to meet under their current circumstances, they might not become friends. Shouldn't we then know why they became friends?

Sony Pictures Classics

The cast, on the other hand, is delightful. Frances McDormand is terrific as Jane, a neurotic and frustrated designer who is losing control. Hers is a very annoying character but she turns her into such an entertaining and sympathetic one. Cathrine Keener does a nice job as Christine, but she could have been great if director and writer Nicole Holofcener bothered giving her a more developed character. Jennifer Aniston is very likeable and kind of relatable as Olivia, the miserably broke and single friend. The standout, however, is Simon McBurney as he is truly outstanding as the maybe gay husband.

Ultimately, Friends with Money could have used a better script —the dialogue is quite enthralling though—, but overall the film is pretty fun and entertaining, the cast does an amazing job and the meltdown scene featuring Frances McDormand is priceless.