No Hard Feelings: A Movie Review of Gene Stupnitsky’s Comedy
ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – N
Director: Gene Stupnitsky
Writer: Gene Stupnitsky, John Phillips (Screenplay)
Cast
- Jennifer Lawrence (Red Sparrow)
- Andrew Barth Feldman (White Noise)
- Laura Benanti (Life & Beth)
- Matthew Broderick (Wonder Park)
- Natalie Morales (Battle of the Sexes)
Plot: On the brink of losing her home, Maddie finds an intriguing job listing: helicopter parents looking for someone to bring their introverted 19-year-old son out of his shell before college. She has one summer to make him a man or die trying.
Runtime: 1 Hour 43 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: No Hard Feelings starts when Maddie (Lawrence) learns she might be losing her family home. She loses her car taking away her main source of income and struggles to make ends meet. Maddie discovers a job which involves parents Allison (Benanti) and Laird (Broderick) wanting an older woman to date their son Percy (Feldman).
When Maddie learns about the job, she accepts the offer, knowing she needs to keep it secret from everyone. However, Percy is socially awkward and tends to spend his time on his phone. Maddie doesn’t find the role as easy as she thought, leading to a series of questionable events.
Verdict on No Hard Feelings
No Hard Feelings is a romantic comedy following a struggling 30-year-old woman who takes a job to help a 19-year-old come out of his shell. While it seems like an easy job for her, it turns out to be a lot more complicated than she imagined.
This does try to give us a new idea about overbearing parents trying to help their son. It plays into the older woman fantasy but ends up leaving a lot relying on over-the-top comedy. There is no way a shy figure like Percy goes from a shy timid figure to the outward feeling guy in two dates. Most of the comedy is lazy and unfunny. While the romance ends up feeling awkward, which is by design. The deeper down message is more about getting the most out of life, more than anything else.
Where to Watch
Final Thoughts –No Hard Feelings is a raunchy comedy lacking the laughs.
