First Take: I Feel Pretty- arguably a film about the effects of concussion

SYNOPSIS:

A woman struggling with insecurity wakes from a fall believing she is the most beautiful and capable woman on the planet. Her new confidence empowers her to live fearlessly, but what happens when she realizes her appearance never changed?

This film has been promoted practically everywhere. That’s never a good sign, and as expected, I Feel Pretty just fails to deliver upon its message of self confidence and positivity- and that’s before I even talk about the film. I should’ve known what to expect when I seen the credit of McG as a producer, as this film just didn’t work whatsoever.

It’s written and directed by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein (directing their first film after years of producing this sort of genre), and where the hell do I start on this- the pacing is all over the shop, the script is one of the weakest I’ve seen for years, the humour simply doesn’t hit, and the general quality of the film feels like it belongs on Netflix rather than on the big screen- clocking in at 1 hour 50 minutes, it starts pretty badly, picks up in the middle, and underdelivers in its narrative conclusion. It’s begging for at least 20 minutes to be cut, this one really drags on. The cinematography from Florian Ballhaus is decent, and the score from Michael Andrews does the job, but still, I was shocked to see a comedy film like this fail to pass the 6 laugh test.

And that leads us to the performances, arguably the one saving grace of this film. Amy Schumer is able to barely hold this film together in her usual, untamed style with savage remarks similar to those from her Comedy Central series, and working with a supporting cast including Michelle Williams, Aidy Bryant, Emily Ratajkowski and Naomi Campbell, the film has potential but unfortunately the execution of the plot effectively turns it into an absolute disaster. My audience lapped it up, and quite rightly so, but considering the lowest common denominator style of humour, I have no choice but to vent my rage in the form of a rant- the Earl Grey didn’t even last 25 minutes on this film.

THE VERDICT

With a boring script, little to no attempt at good quality humour, and a sense of direction all over the place, I Feel Pretty fails at delivering the positive message that it has been promoting in the media. Yes, opening against Avengers has benefitted its box office results, but the general quality means that it won’t last long on the big screen. Wait for the DVD folks, it’s much better enjoyed on a small screen with a couple of friends and a considerable amount of alcohol. Not only am I angry, but I am remarkably disappointed.

RATING- 2/5