Natalie Morales

No Hard Feelings (2023): A Hot Hot Hot Summer on Long Island

Posted on by Jack Drees

“No Hard Feelings” is directed by Gene Stupnitsky (Bad Teacher, Good Boys) and stars Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games, Joy), Andrew Barth Feldman (A Tourist’s Guide to Love, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series), Laura Benanti (Nashville, The Detour), Natalie Morales (The Grinder, Abby’s), and Matthew Broderick (Election, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off). This film is about a woman whose car breaks down and will do anything to receive a new one. Anything. Even date the brains out of a 19 year old. When the 32 year old woman finds this 19 year old man undateable, chaos, hilarity, and awkwardness ensues.

If you have been looking at some of the movies coming out this summer, you would notice that some have unusual or unique marketing campaigns. If you go on YouTube, Universal is airing a year-long countdown to “Oppenheimer.” “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” director Christopher McQuarrie alongside star Tom Cruise started a trend of buying movie tickets for their competition all the while promoting their own film. Barbie director Greta Gerwig and star Margot Robbie followed suit showing off their own tickets on social media. Although there is one marketing campaign that also caught my attention, that being the one for “No Hard Feelings.” In addition to the funny red band trailer, Sony and crew took advantage of billboards to not necessarily promote the movie, but put up an ad promoting a car, specifically this one that says NEED A CAR? “DATE” OUR SON. The head-turning ad of course was not real, but rather a potential boost for the “No Hard Feelings” movie. I saw that ad occasionally on a billboard by I-93 on the way to work. The ad also presents the fascinatingly taboo concept of the film. Specifically, Maddie, a 32 year old woman, must “date” Percy, a 19 year old boy, to get the car she is after.

This is not the first time this decade where we had a lead couple with a bit of an age gap in cinema, as Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza” had a 25 year old woman dating a 15 year old boy. Although the biggest difference between these two films is that I actually found “No Hard Feelings” to be a fine use of my time. I know a lot of people enjoyed “Licorice Pizza.” It is competently made. But I found the characters to be unlikable, most notably Gary Valentine. I found him to be creepy and power hungry and it did not sit well with me. A romcom is only as good as its two romantically involved leads, and I think Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman make for a great pair.

When I wrote my “Licorice Pizza” review, I addressed the age gap between the two leads, but I also said that if Gary Valentine were 18 years old, that would make the romantic connection between them more palatable. In this film, Percy is, again, 19, which makes him a legal adult. Despite being 13 years apart from Maddie, I think their connection, while taboo, is not outright uncomfortable or obscene because it is by all accounts, fair game according to U.S. law. Sure, it is 3 more years apart than the leads in “Licorice Pizza,” but still.

That said, I think both leads are not only great in this film, I almost cannot imagine anyone else playing their characters. Jennifer Lawrence is perfectly cast as this down on her luck individual who just so happens to have a bit of a potty mouth. The casting only makes sense because Lawrence was raised to be tough, there is an interview where she was supposed to drop as many swears as she could to raise money for charity. That toughness is often exuded from Maddie, who tries to change Percy for what she thinks is for the better. She observes Percy, listens to him, and comes to the conclusion that his helicopter parents have had a tremendous influence on his day to day life. He does not take any risks, lacks confidence, and has no experience with partying or letting himself loose. He is kind of a pariah. He kind of reminds me of my younger self in some ways as I was, and kind of still am a reserved dork (though I have my moments of extroversion).

Though I was also pleasantly surprised to see how much I enjoyed this film’s portrayal of Percy’s parents. Laura Benanti and Matthew Broderick play their parts with excellence. Both of them have their moments of levity, but do not steal the spotlight from our lead duo. Speaking of the two leads, the way their romantic connection throttles the rest of the story only makes the presence of these parents all the better. This is especially true in the second act.

“No Hard Feelings” in some ways elicits the vibes of sex comedies like “Risky Business” and “The Graduate.” Much like “Risky Business,” there is a heavy part of the plot dedicated to a car. There is even, maybe in the greatest of coincidences…? A heavy part of the plot dedicated to Princeton University. The protagonist is transitioning from high school to college. The love interest, if you can call them that, propels the protagonist to change themselves to the point of making them appear more individualistic. “The Graduate” has a couple romantically-attached leads, both of whom are adults, who have quite the age gap as well. If I had to choose a film to watch on a Friday night, I would honestly pick either of those two. But there is a healthy mix of comedy and romance in this film, which is also the case with those two. “No Hard Feelings” feels surprisingly more intimate than its advertising lead me to believe, but that is not a bad thing because I bought into the chemistry between the two leads and they make it work.

I am not going to pretend “No Hard Feelings” is the funniest movie on the planet. In fact, without giving much away, as this pertains to a future review, it is not even the funniest movie I have seen in the past few weeks. But if you are looking for a romantic comedy that does a bit more than scratch the surface, “No Hard Feelings” gets the job done. I have no plans to see it again, but I am glad I saw it this once. If anything, I am glad we are getting movies like this to begin with. It is a movie that I went in expecting a hilarious dose of sex humor, which I ultimately got. But I also felt what was watching was surprisingly heartfelt. I like the two leads not only as an unlikely duo, but they are actually kind of cute together. As I said in the beginning, films like this one are as good as its romantically involved leads. If these two did not click, this would have been a hard watch, and the only feeling I would have acquired, was one of sickness.

In the end, “No Hard Feelings” checks a bunch of marks not only as a romcom, but also doubles as a coming of age story if you are viewing it from the perspective of Feldman. Yes, Jennifer Lawrence is the bigger name and much of the movie revolves around her journey, but it equally gives enough time to Feldman’s character to see where he takes him. I think Feldman, like Lawrence happens to be right now, is going to be a name to look out for. He is phenomenal in his role. “No Hard Feelings” works because not only these two leads are likable together, but as individuals. While the movie definitely presents Percy as shy and reserved, to the point of it being an extended joke, I found that shyness relatable at times because he reminded me of my teenage years. I did not get out much, I was never the life of the party, I had weird interests that stick with me today, and I never had much of a social life. Meanwhile, Maddie is just trying to get by each and every day. All she wants is a car. That’s all anyone living in a country with underfunded, neglected public transit ever wants. It goes to show that opposites attract and that we may be starting to get some genuinely good comedies again. Since the pandemic, I can only name a few straight up comedies that I remember laughing to on a consistent basis, and this is one of them. Yeah, I managed to witness some highlights like “Clerks III.” Sure, we have had funny films like “The Menu,” but to call it a comedy would be a bit of a stretch. Maybe it is a dark comedy, but I would put it somewhere between comedy and horror. It is nice to see more lighthearted fare, even if it contains filth. I am going to give “No Hard Feelings” a 7/10.

“No Hard Feelings” is now playing in theaters everywhere. Tickets are available now.

Thanks for reading this review! My next review is going to be for Pixar’s “Elemental.” Also coming soon, I will be sharing my thoughts on “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken,” “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” “Joy Ride,” and “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.” If you want to see this and more from Scene Before, follow the blog either with an email or WordPress account! Also, check out the official Facebook page! I want to know, did you see “No Hard Feelings?” What did you think about it? Or, what is your favorite sex comedy? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!

The Little Things (2021): Jared Leto Steals the Show and Warner Bros. Almost Steals My Money

Posted on by Jack Drees

“The Little Things” is directed by John Lee Hancock (Saving Mr. Banks, The Rookie) and stars Denzel Washington (The Equalizer, Training Day), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody, Night at the Museum), Jared Leto (Blade Runner 2049, Suicide Squad), and Natalie Morales (The Grinder, Dead to Me). This film is about two cops who try to track down a serial killer.

“The Little Things” is the latest film from Warner Bros., the studio that was supposedly set to save theatrical exhibition this summer with “Tenet,” only to have it underperform in various markets and have them simultaneously release a ton of movies, including this one on HBO Max the same day it hits theaters. What do I think about that? Well, if things went right, which I will tell you as one who often backs filmmakers, things did not go right, I think this is not only a blow to the movie theater industry, which has already suffered enough over the past year, but also shows that an entire studio can kind of get away with avoiding contractual obligations (like the fact that “Dune” was supposed to be a theatrical exclusive) and go behind clients’ backs. Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins get a ton of money for this deal? What about all those other people responsible? I am not going to deny that there are perks in case you live in a state where theaters are closed, in which case, I am happy you can have the opportunity to watch these movies, but this is one giant double edged sword as an avid supporter of theatrical exhibition.

To avoid making a tangent longer than it needs to be, I will say off the bat, having seen “The Little Things,” this does feel like a film that would have gotten away with being a streaming premiere. Whether it ends up in some theaters or not, it kind of has that “watch at home” feel. This is not an enormous mockery on the film by any means. It’s sort of a mockery, but it is not to say it is entirely terrible, but there are times where it kind of has a television feel. In fact, one of the film’s actors, Jared Leto, happens to agree.

“They think they can just make so much more money with the bigger event movies. They found that for television, if they can do something that’s episodic, then people still enjoy those kinds of stories. I’m not saying they should stop making movies like ‘The Little Things,’ but I do think if you talk about like ‘The Undoing,’ people like to spend more time with those characters. And there’s less stigma going back and forth from television to film.”

While I cannot say I have seen “The Undoing,” Leto seems to have a point.

Although if you want me to be real, “The Little Things” is not that great. Let me start off with the positives however. “The Little Things” is a well-directed and well-cast film. The feel is borderline expansive yet intimate, and it flows all the way through. In fact, all the lead cast members portray their roles with proficiency. However, this film has problems and they too need to be addressed.

People say that art is subjective, therefore film is subjective. Those people are not wrong. My subjective opinion, “The Little Things” is a little boring. I was able to keep my chin up all the way through, but for all I know it may just be my luck. “The Little Things” is one of those films that starts off slow and stays that way for the entire movie. I feel as if I am starting to say this more often than I should but it bears repeating. Slow does not equal bad. Slow is great if it is executed well. Anything can be great if it is executed well. Whoever thought “The LEGO Movie” would work? Not everyone, that is for sure. Guess what? It is my favorite animated film of the 2010s. Anything can work if you know how to deliver on the concept. Sadly for “The Little Things,” the almost snooze-worthy first half allows the movie to fizzle. It does pick up however, and the second half is worth the price of admission. Without going into detail, my favorite parts of the movie is when situations get heavy and we see characters interact with each other in scenarios that could become more tense by the second. The film also kind of gets twisty, and I dig it.

I will state once again, one thing that truly sells “The Little Things” are the performances. Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto are all likable in this film. Denzel Washington has this sort of mellow feel to him. Rami Malek plays a suave-looking detective and I almost cannot imagine anyone else playing his character. Malek’s performance here allows him to continue to define himself as an admirable actor. He already has an Academy Award on his shelf for his role in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and while I do not think he will get as much recognition for this performance, Malek’s portrayal tends to reveal that he will continue to commit to his craft.

As much as I like Washington and Malek, who are both talented and reveal themselves as competent in their own rights, the star of the show is Jared Leto. Jared Leto has honestly been a controversial name for me over the past few years, and not necessarily because I hate him, but because his roles have gone from somewhat underwhelming to unbelievably great. He basically went from playing the worst live-action Joker in “Suicide Squad” to encapsulating something beautiful with Niander Wallace in “Blade Runner 2049.” Keeping the latter in mind, I liked Jared Leto in “Blade Runner 2049.” In “The Little Things,” he is another animal. Because this movie presents itself as an opportunity where he can just let himself loose. And it is not like a live-action cartoon or another Jim Carrey or anything, although I do think Carrey would have done the role properly if it were in his hands, it’s just a crazy guy who occasionally says some kooky lines and has these oddball mannerisms. Some of the stuff he says just flies off the tongue and it intrigues me every time. If you plan to watch “The Little Things” this weekend, I will say that if you watch for Rami Malek or Denzel Washington, you might not be disappointed with either of those two, but I think you may want to *stay* for Jared Leto. After seeing his performance here, I am now more curious about “Morbius.” I did not think I would say that. Well done, movie!

In the end, “The Little Things” is solid in some parts, but noticeably dull. There are probably more positives than negatives, and I would not refrain from watching it a second time, but if I had to predict which movie I would be talking about in the most positive light by the end of the year, it would not be this one. There are still reasons to watch it, and it is from a likable director, specifically John Lee Hancock. Have you seen “Saving Mr. Banks?” Watch it! Now! Although it does have a plethora of personal issues to keep me from calling it the next big thing. Just because this is entertaining, does not mean it cannot make you nearly want to fall asleep. I am going to give “The Little Things” a 6/10.

Minor sidenote, the movie also comes with a brand new Warner Bros. logo. We’ve kind of seen teases of it during films like “Tenet” and “Wonder Woman 1984,” but if I am not wrong, “The Little Things” is the first film where we get to see the new standard edition of the revamped logo, and it does not seem to disappoint.

“The Little Things” is available now in theaters and on HBO Max for all subscribers at no extra cost. Get your tickets or subscribe to HBO Max now to enjoy your experience.

Thanks for reading this review! If you are a movie fan like me, you may follow the awards circuit. And now as the Movie Reviewing Moron, I am here to remind you that the circuit is not complete without me throwing my hat into the ring. This March I will be doing my 3rd edition of the Jackoff Awards, this time focusing on 2020 in film. If you want to watch the trailer promoting it, scroll to the end of this post. Speaking of 2020 in film, one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, “Nomadland,” is FINALLY coming to theaters. It was supposed to be in theaters this December, only to get pushed back due to COVID-19, and while it is not going to be fully released until its simultaneous theatrical and Hulu debut on February 19th, “Nomadland” is now playing in select IMAX theaters. And next weekend, one of my local spots is going to be getting this movie. I already got my tickets, and I cannot be more excited. Be sure to follow Scene Before with an email or WordPress account, and check out the Facebook page, so you can stay tuned for more great content! I want to know, did you see “The Little Things?” What did you think about it? Or, are you planning to watch the movie in the theater or on HBO Max? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!

Stuber (2019): Somewhat Worthy of a Tip

Posted on by Jack Drees

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“Stuber” is directed by Michael Dowse (What If, Man Seeking Woman) and stars Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick, Silicon Valley) and Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy, Blade Runner 2049). This film is about a duo who meet at a random point in time, setting up an unexpected adventure. One guy is an Uber driver and the other is a cop on a mission. Stu, the Uber driver, is assisting Vic, the cop, in completing said mission.

I saw this film last night as part of an advanced screening. I was gonna go see it a couple weeks back, but I ended up canceling that commitment for several reasons. However, I got to take another chance at an advanced screening and I was not gonna let it go to waste. “Stuber” was HEAVILY advertised on my TV. Every time I had my cable on truTV or some other similar channel, it was almost a guarantee that I would see an ad for “Stuber” throughout a majority of the commercial breaks. If I had a nickel for every time I saw a “Stuber” ad before checking this movie out, I’d probably use that to pay for a good portion of a ticket to go see “Stuber” with the public. And there are many times when I saw the ads to which they made me grin. I thought Nanjiani and Bautista would make an excellent buddy-esque pair, and the movie would have the same, proper action-comedy vibe that a film like “Central Intelligence” managed to provide.

How was “Stuber” you ask? Well, instead of answering that question outright, part of me wants to remind you all that I wanted to become a game show host. Because I could easily ask such a question, go to a commercial break, and reveal my thoughts when the show returns. But I can’t do that, because this is the blog of the movie reviewing moron. So, if that statement does not provide any hints, the answer to that question nearly resembles a wheel of confusion. But if I had to provide an answer at this moment, I’d say the movie was fun and humorous, which is the least I can ask for from a comedy. But the reason why I feel like I have a wheel of confusion in my mind is because even though the movie made me laugh, it is simultaneously clashing with a number of awkward or less than interesting moments. But the good news is, all of it doesn’t feel like it lasts forever due to the movie’s short runtime of an hour and thirty-three minutes. The film is a breeze to get through even with it’s flaws. So did I enjoy it? Absolutely! Would I give it a second watch? Sure! …On TBS.

If you ask me, the writing for “Stuber” is decent enough comedy-wise. It has a number of smart jokes that involve possible annoyances when it comes to driving an Uber, a number of gags involving Nanjiani’s driving, and the blending of the scaredy cat driver and fearless cop.

I will say though, on that second part, one thing that I found interesting was the choice to make Kumail Nanjiani’s car a Nissan Leaf. Partially because it is an electric car, which manages to bring in a certain flair to the film that would have not been present had the car been absent, and to my personal surprise, it did not make the movie feel like a commercial. Granted, one of the car’s crucial features (and downfalls) happen to make an appearance in the film at a certain point, but it flowed nevertheless. There’s a moment at the end of the film that makes the movie almost feel like a commercial for Uber, but it saves itself from becoming one at the last minute. Granted, it almost made me want to buy a Nissan Leaf, but if you don’t know me, I kinda care about the environment in some ways so I had a thought like that in my head before going to see this movie.

Moving onto characters, Kumail Nanjiani does a fine job at portraying the Uber driver who has no other desire than to just stay away from danger. But I also kind of admire how part of the movie’s plot tries to emphasize the importance of his character’s “five star wishes.” He asks his customers to give him a five star rating, he wants to keep himself in a good combined rating position in order to continue being a driver, and while it was sometimes funny to read some of the one star reviews for Nanjiani, I felt his pain as I read those because for what I saw, he was doing everything he can to impress his customers. Sadly though, his chemistry with Dave Bautista, while somewhat effective, was kind of off at times.

In fact, when it comes to Bautista (right), he’s very hit or miss in this movie. I buy him as a cop who kicks ass and takes names, but there are a select few moments, which are too unimportant to talk about, where I felt like he was stumbling in the acting department. Granted, Bautista was never really the best actor to begin with. I imagine he is a lovely guy, and he can occasionally provide a fun screen presence kind of like he did in the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies, but there are select moments where he would say one line and it feels out of place based on the way Bautista executed said line. Although one of the best parts of Bautista’s character in this film is that he goes through the entire runtime with poor eyesight, we see various shots that provide his character’s perspective. He has to stare at a handheld eye chart and each shot is fuzzy, I thought it was a good way to highlight the character’s weakness. And despite how serious blindness can be in real life and how much it can ruin or alter one’s outlook on things, there was a moment in the film leading up to the eventual pairing of Nanjiani and Bautista that I thought was very funny. Unfortunately, despite some hilarity between the pair, it didn’t click at every solitary second.

Another problem I had with the movie is despite the short runtime, there are a lot of crucial plot points that go into it, which is fine, but these plot points felt like loose Jenga blocks on the verge of falling to the ground. Would the movie be fine with its additional plot points staying in? Absolutely. But they nevertheless almost felt like they could have been left out of the screenplay. If that were the case, the movie might have ended up being better because we can focus on the dynamic duo as opposed to anything else. Granted, Nanjiani’s character had a rather interesting side story (two of them in fact), but there’s one of them that feels like it BARELY has a purpose of being in the film. I won’t go into much detail, but still.

In the end, “Stuber” is a fun comedy to watch, maybe at matinee price, or once it becomes free on television. Nevertheless, it kind of feels like a throwaway movie, which is somewhat disappointing because I was looking forward to this, and I thought it was going to be better than it ultimately was. For crying out loud, the first screening I tried to get into for this film was held two weeks prior to the film’s release! I guess the studio had some faith in “Stuber” before it came out! Nanjiani and Bautista as a pair resemble a game of “Pong.” You may get some lucky hits, but a few less than satisfying misses. But compared to “Pong,” “Stuber” is much easier to get through. I’m going to give “Stuber” a 6/10.

Thanks for reading this review! I just want to let everyone know that this Monday I am going to be continuing my Quentin Tarantino review series, and I have decided that my second review is going to be for “Django Unchained” starring Jamie Foxx (Ray, Collateral) as a freed slave who teams up with a bounty hunter to help him reunite with his wife. I just watched the film this past Tuesday and I will have my thoughts on it posted as soon as Monday approaches. Be sure to follow Scene Before to check out that post in the future, please support the blog by subscribing through your WordPress account or email, and if you are on Facebook, check out my page! Also, I don’t demand a 5 star rating, but clicking that LIKE star on the post would definitely be appreciated! I want to know, did you see “Stuber?” What did you think about it? Or, either as a customer or an employee, what is one of your most interesting, best, or worst Uber experiences? It can even be for Lyft for all I care! Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!