No Hard Feelings

Director: Gene Stupnitsky

Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Andrew Barth Feldman, Laura Benanti, Matthew Broderick

Genre:  Comedy

 

 

You must have observed as a critic that the comedy lies in modern films has somewhat lost its humor. They lack comedy, rather you find them more vulgar. Vulgarity is one of the tools in comedy films that has been used in comic movies for decades besides bumping into the pols, falling on things, and being in an awkward situation. Aforesaid mentioned ideas are acceptable amongst the audience as far as they are making them giggle. Jennifer Lawrence tried very hard to use these techniques in the recent film "No Hard Feelings" to entertain the audience, but she was unable to convince them that she was humorous. Although you may find her hilarious during some interviews, as long as movies are concerned she is not up to the mark.

 

 

Maddie, a native Montauk townie played by Jennifer Lawrence, is in danger of losing her home due to gentrification and expensive property taxes. She responds to a Craigslist advertisement placed by an affluent couple seeking to hire a 20-something lady to help their 19-year-old son Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman) get over his social awkwardness before he leaves for Princeton. Maddie, who is 32, is clearly out of Percy's league, but if all the objectives are accomplished, his parents will buy her a Buick Regal.

That Buick is the solution to all of Maddie's issues since she needs it to operate an Uber vehicle during the summer when city dwellers invade Montauk and take over the sleepy beach town. Maddie feels that the house she lives in, which she inherited from her late mother, is the only thing that ties her to her family. The entire movie is marked by Maddie's contempt for visitors and the wealthy, yet her allure as a sexual object more than makes up for this. The movie makes good use of her charm, but when she faces up against Percy, who is intentionally ignorant, it poses a challenge for her. He first writes Maddie off as a crazy kidnapping adult and beats her during their "meet-cute."

 

 

Maddie and Percy reveal sentiments and experiences to one another that they had previously kept private. Maddie grows fond of Percy and wants him to be a social success. Her primary concern is always getting the car, but she makes the decision to help him overcome his helicopter-parent worry so he may become the man he was meant to be in order to get him ready for college. Many references to Hall & Oates' "Man-eater," which is extensively discussed, and a high school party where Maddie feels her age is driven by these antics.

Overall, the film wasn't very successful, but both Andrew Feldman and Jennifer Lawrence did have some moderate chemistry. This merits appreciation. Although it might be challenging to play for an audience with such a wide age gap, they did a good job with both comedic and poignant passages. The prior films of director Gene Stupnitsky, such as "Office" and "Bad Teacher," do not allow us to anticipate such typical compositions in certain genres like comedy.

 

-Sajid Ali

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