Film Review: A Simple Favor (2018)
Modern Hollywood has challenged the traditional concept of the film star. The main reason lies in the fact that the most successful blockbusters become so because of reasons that have increasingly less to do with the names of the stars at the forefront. Or, more precisely, it is more likely that someone will become a star because they appear in a successful film than because a particular name will make a film successful. One of the relatively rare examples of a film that was saved by its acting, i.e., the names at the forefront, is A Simple Favor, the new film by Paul Feig, a specialist in comedies with female protagonists.
A Simple Favor, however, by genre, belongs more to the space between comedy and "noir" thriller. The main credit for this is the literary source, i.e., the eponymous novel by Darcey Bell, which critics have declared a Hitchockian thriller, and which 20th Century Fox acquired for adaptation before the book even reached the bookstore shelves. The nominal protagonist is Stephanie Smothers (Anna Kendrick), a single mother from the New York suburbs who tries to lead her and her child’s modest life according to traditional ideals, including school activities and managing a lifestyle dedicated to culinary recipes and giving household tips over Internet. By chance, her son attends the same class as the son of Emily Nelson (Blake Lively), a woman who represents Stephanie's complete opposite: she is a troublemaker, a drinker, and a smoker, but also has a glamorous job, an attractive husband (Henry Golding), and lives in a luxurious home that Stephanie can only dream of. Stephanie quickly befriends Emily and confides her most intimate secrets, but she soon discovers that Emily hides her true nature. Stephanie will be convinced of this when Emily entrusts her son to her care and then disappears, forcing Stephanie to embark on a search that leads to a series of incredible revelations.
The film begins as a "pure" comedy, and appears typical of Feig’s oeuvre, with the emphasis on the portrayal of vivid female characters, as well as a dose of social commentary. This is most clearly seen in the character of Stephanie, who represents the archetypal "perfect" housewife of modern American middle-class life, whose devotion to family and home upkeep can be measured only against her social engagement. However, over time, A Simple Favor begins to acquire much more serious content and shifts into the waters of dark "noir" thriller, and ultimately contains a few twists typical of Mexican telenovelas. All of this escalates into a somewhat disappointing and anti-climactic, although fairly predictable, ending. A film so tone-deaf and undefined in tone would usually be condemned to failure, and here Feig, whose films have had issues with pacing and weak endings, finds himself at a loss, as it seems unlikely that his film would have succeded without best casting possible. Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively, however, give some of their best roles in their careers, and their fascinating performances keep the film afloat and make it exceptionally entertaining. This is further enhanced by a relatively intriguing soundtrack based on classic French pop music from the 20th cventury, which creates an unusual atmosphere. A Simple Favor has done well with critics, who are usually hostile to this type of films, and this could even be recommended to the public.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
(Note: The text in the original Croatian version was posted here.)
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