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.
Chuck says:
Pam says
No one can deny that Jennifer Lawrence isn’t afraid of taking chances with movies as we’ve seen with the flop “Mother!”as well as the quiet indie gem “Causeway.” Unfortunately, her most recent release “No Hard Feelings” should have sent her running in another direction; far, far away from it. It’s one of the most cringe-worthy, uncomfortable, and just plain offensive movie I’ve seen in recent years. The word icky continually came to my mind as I sat through this mess.
If you’re familiar with the premise of or have seen “Failure to Launch” from 2006, it’s similar, but where it’s different is in all the places that matter. First, the “boy” in question isn’t Matthew McConaughey, it’s a talented young man by the name of Andrew Barth Feldman who plays Percy, a just-turned 19 year-old boy. And he is just a boy. Second, he’s smart, but awkward and still has yet to mature in every way imaginable. His parents played by Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti hire Maddie (Lawrence) through an on-line ad to “date” their son to get him out of his shell so he can attend his Ivy League school, prepared for all that lies ahead. Maddie nails the interview with dear old Mom and Dad and she’s cinched the deal. Her motivation? She’s promised an old Buick to replace her repossessed car thanks to back taxes on her home in the increasingly expensive summer town of Montauk.
From the moment Maddie “accidentally” meets Percy at the humane society, every word and motion is cringeworthy as she preys upon this innocent soul. She’s forceful and crude as she pushes herself upon this boy, the age difference of nearly 15 years which may not be much at some points in life, but it is here. Maddie constantly pressures Percy to drink and attempt to cross the sexual finish line so she can get her Buick and make money as an Uber driver during the packed summer months. Day after day we witness the onslaught of her horrible behavior until Percy sticks up for himself and teaches Maddie a lesson or two. This, I think, is supposed to be the pivotal point in the film where we truly understand the harrowing life this local resident has endured at the hands of the “summer people.” The depth of movies is about as deep as a a puddle in Death Valley in July.
“No Hard Feelings” was not only an empty script, it was so poorly directed that seasoned veterans like Lawrence and Broderick came off as stilted cardboard cutouts who were being fed their lines. Feldman, however, was a standout in this mess as he somehow found a way to act and react appropriately. Advertised as a comedy (and there were a couple of funny moments), it’s painfully obvious that Lawrence just doesn’t have the timing or body language to carry a comedic film. And I can’t help but wonder if the genders were reversed how up-in-arms people would be to portray the concept of this film. Haven’t we learned from the past? This is not a topic that is comedic in any way…it’s simply offensive.
0 stars
