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No Hard Feelings (2023)
An effervescent, sex-on-legs performance by Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence is at the center of 2023's No Hard Feelings, an improbable but engaging romantic comedy that is not big on originality, but the star makes you care about what's happening.
Lawrence plays Maddie, a bartender and Uber driver who lives on Long Island but is in danger of losing her house and her car. She actually finds an ad on Craig's list from a wealthy couple offering a Buick Regal to a woman in her mid-20's who will "date" their socially awkward son, Percy, and get him to come out of his. And, well, you can probably guess the rest of what happens.
Director and co-screenwriter Gene Stuptnitsky, who was part of the writing team for the NBC sitcom The Office has concocted a story that is probably every 17 year old's dream and reminded me of a lot of comedies from the past, including Failure to Launch, .I]Class[/i], My Tutor, The Girl Next Door, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, but still manages to establishes its own comedic credentials with its casting of the Oscar winner in the starring role and her complete investment in a role that allows the actress to run the gamut.
The story finds the star doing a lot of physical comedy, which is something I don't think of when I think o Jennifer Lawrence but she pretty much nails all of it. I loved her trying to maneuver uphill on a pair of roller blades, draped on the hood of a car, and having a fight on the beach with three strangers while she's completely nude. But then, we get to see every bit of vulnerability the actress can muster when she is moved by the young man serenading her on the piano in a crowded restaurant. This is where Stupnitsky has us exactly where he wants us and then throws us a wicked curve ball that pulls the couple apart and we wonder if we're ever going to get a happy ending.
Haven't enjoyed Lawrence onscreen this much since Silver Linings Playbook and her gift for light and physical comedy was a pleasant surprise. Newcomer Andrew Barth Feldman holds his own against Lawrence though, displaying some genuine acting chops here. Also making the most of their screentime were Natalie Morales and Scott MacArthur as Maddie's BFF's and Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti as Percy's parents. It could have moved a little more quickly than it did, but Lawrence demands viewer attention.
An effervescent, sex-on-legs performance by Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence is at the center of 2023's No Hard Feelings, an improbable but engaging romantic comedy that is not big on originality, but the star makes you care about what's happening.
Lawrence plays Maddie, a bartender and Uber driver who lives on Long Island but is in danger of losing her house and her car. She actually finds an ad on Craig's list from a wealthy couple offering a Buick Regal to a woman in her mid-20's who will "date" their socially awkward son, Percy, and get him to come out of his. And, well, you can probably guess the rest of what happens.
The story finds the star doing a lot of physical comedy, which is something I don't think of when I think o Jennifer Lawrence but she pretty much nails all of it. I loved her trying to maneuver uphill on a pair of roller blades, draped on the hood of a car, and having a fight on the beach with three strangers while she's completely nude. But then, we get to see every bit of vulnerability the actress can muster when she is moved by the young man serenading her on the piano in a crowded restaurant. This is where Stupnitsky has us exactly where he wants us and then throws us a wicked curve ball that pulls the couple apart and we wonder if we're ever going to get a happy ending.
Haven't enjoyed Lawrence onscreen this much since Silver Linings Playbook and her gift for light and physical comedy was a pleasant surprise. Newcomer Andrew Barth Feldman holds his own against Lawrence though, displaying some genuine acting chops here. Also making the most of their screentime were Natalie Morales and Scott MacArthur as Maddie's BFF's and Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti as Percy's parents. It could have moved a little more quickly than it did, but Lawrence demands viewer attention.