Anthony's Film Review - A Simple Favor (2018)

This darkly comic mystery starts out a bit slow, but definite makes up for it afterward...

A Simple Favor, directed by Paul Feig and based on the novel by Darcey Bell, is one of those movies that truly straddles the line between comedy and drama. When you watch the first couple of minutes of it, you'll notice a constant feeling of both mild pleasant lightheartedness and slight uneasy suspense. You basically have a mashup of the two ambient tones that let you experience both simultaneously. This is how it is pretty much through the rest of the movie, such that certain late scenes have almost pleasant dialogue even in the face of a tense or threatening situation. While people in real life might not behave exactly like that in the same scenario, it's still rather unique to experience a movie like this.

Before I go further into what makes this film ultimately satisfying, I shall point out two minor flaws. First off, one of the two principal characters isn't exactly sympathetic. I'm not talking about Anna Kendrick's character, a widowed suburban mother named Stephanie Smothers, because she seems fairly well-mannered though not a total prude. I'm talking about Blake Lively's character Emily Nelson, another mother whose son goes to the same school as Stephanie's son, because she is clearly a heavy drinker who lacks self-inhibition. If you can relate to such a character, or you are attracted to wild women like her, fine. But when Emily has not returned home for several days and the police are contacted to investigate, which is the event that sets the story in motion, it may be hard to care that someone like her has gone missing.

In addition, there was one scene where the comedy-drama tone seemed to ruin the realism of it. It's where Stephanie gets an unexpected visit from a detective while at Emily's house. The detective proceeds to ask various questions and explore multiple avenues of inquiry, per standard procedure. If you're presumably innocent like Stephanie appears to be, you would likely be calm, truthful, and cooperative knowing that you're in the clear. But here, she's answering questions rather nervously, making her look like the guilty party when, at least at that point, there's no reason to see her as the guilty party. To be fair, it may have to do with the dress she happens to be wearing during this scene, but even so, you'd think she could still maintain composure.

That said, this film does take off and keeps things interesting. There are scenes that focus on Stephanie going through life while knowing Emily is missing. We also see Emily's husband Sean Townsend, played by Henry Golding from Crazy Rich Asians, also trying to live while the search for Emily continues. At certain points, there are interesting sex scenes that occur, including one early on that reveals a startling secret about Stephanie. Still, all of this is filler in between the real meat of the story: the mystery surrounding Emily.

Actually, it's two mysteries in one. The question isn't just about what happened to Emily. It's also about who she really is. In the beginning, we don't even know what Emily does for a living until Stephanie sees that up close. As Stephanie uncovers one clue after another, there is a riveting sense of getting to the truth. And I have to admit. What is ultimately revealed is something I never expected, and perhaps mystery enthusiasts might not figure it out quickly either. It is the last portion of the movie that kept me engaged and made me forget about the little grievances I had earlier.

A Simple Favor looks like a simple movie at first, but if you give it a chance, you will find that it's rather intricate in its development of plot and characters. It's also a nice opportunity to see good performances by Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, and Henry Golding. As a whole, even with the relatively less engaging start, this movie works. It's a pleasantly dark, or darkly pleasant, mix of romance and mystery plus a little dose of suspense. Think of it as a creative cocktail that blends different flavors into one satisfying experience. Like something Emily would be eager to consume.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about A Simple Favor, visit the Internet Movie Database.