This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Short Shrift in a Tall Tale
Plot Overview
Podcaster and stringer for the New
Yorker Ben Manalowitz (B.J. Novak) is heavily into the New
York hookup scene and is lucky to even remember the names of his scores.
One such liaison was with Abilene “Abby” Shaw (Lio Tipton)
a singer wannabe from Texas who embellished their story to her
family. When she went home and died of an overdose, her tearful
brother Ty (Boyd Holbrook) phones to persuade him to come for the funeral.
His editor Eloise (Issa Rae) thinks there's a story in it (“this is a
story defining hookup culture,”) so she sends him.
The family takes a shine to Ben who
inveigles himself into all things Texan. His editor likes his story
that conjures up a conspiracy with nada supporting it. Lots of Texas folk culture gets thrown
in. The brother wants Ben's help in avenging the death of his sister.
Ideology
Peaceable Ben agrees to help define how Abby met her demise
but will leave any retribution to the police. Thus is begun his
transformation into an avenging angel à la, (Prov. 30:33) “Surely the churning
of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth
forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife.”
A constant aggravation over time can change a state of complacency
to one of conflict like (liquid) milk upon being churned changing to
(solid) butter. An irritation to some critical area (like the nose)
can make it bleed. In this movie Ben works long and hard on his story
piece until his interest suddenly changes from the commercial aspect
to the actual people involved. And there's a scene where Ben's face
bleeds from shrapnel from an exploding Prius.
It remains to be seen whether
Ben upon tracking down the nebulous “conspiracy” to murder
Abby can be provoked into avenging her death with his pen mightier
than the sword or with the other.
Production Values
“” (2022) was written and directed by B.J. Novak. It stars B.J. Novak, Issa Rae, and Boyd Holbrook. The acting was fair to middling in colorful characters.
MPAA rated it R for language and brief violence. It has a run time of 1 hour & 34 minutes.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
This is a dark comedy that's funny in a lot of places. The humor is mostly at the expense of a self-important press, but Texas is hardly spared. A microphone wandering around can end up in a lot of interesting places. Surprises abound. It's a good one. Don't miss it.
Movie Ratings
Action Factor: Weak action scenes. Suitability For Children: Not Suitable for Children of Any Age. Special effects: Average special effects. Video Occasion: Fit For a Friday Evening. Suspense: A few suspenseful moments. Overall movie rating: Three stars out of five.
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