TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL 2015 // A FILM REVIEW OF "MAN UP"
The 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, presented by AT&T, runs April 15th-26th and features hundreds of features, documentaries, short films, and special events all throughout downtown New York City. The ArtsWire Weekly's three featured reviewers Mateo, Derek, & Chrisena are hitting the festival and bringing the reviews right to you! What you should see and what you should skip...
I have officially found my new favorite romantic comedy. This film has all of the unfortunate circumstances of Bridget Jones's Diary, with all the discomfort of Meet The Parents and a dash of You've Got Mail sprinkled on top. That is to say that it's a perfect combination of awkward, heartwarmingly honest and tragically dysfunctional.
When single Nancy (Lake Bell) is gifted a self- help book from an annoyingly chipper 24 year old, Nancy accidentally steals a blind date meant for someone else. Every time she considers coming clean about the deception, Jack (Simon Pegg) says something that instantly makes her stop. Once her secret is revealed, the two are pushed together by fate and are forced to spend an entire night out. Every limit is tested. The two run into Jack’s cheating ex-wife, Nancy’s stalker from high school, bad traffic and wrong directions.
It has been a long time since I have been so connected and invested in a comedic story. The man next to me was literally laughing so hard he gave himself a coughing fit. However, don't think that this is only a comedy, because there is much more depth than the stereotypical rom-com. A moving monologue by both romantic leads actually had me surprisingly in tears. The entire film moved at a quick clip with farcical like pacing, but when these specific moments came, the entire film paused, allowing the authenticity carry the pauses.
The soundtrack was engaging and fun, the acting was both high energy and honest, and the story was interesting and my new favorite.
VERDICT: MUST SEE
DIRECTED BY Ben Palmer WRITTEN BY Tess Morris STARRING Simon Pegg, Lake Bell
Playing as part of The 2015 Tribeca International Film Festival. For tickets & schedules: http://www.tribecafilm.com
CHRISENA RICCI once went to a costume party dressed in an all black dress and black wig. No one there could guess who she was. So she shouted out, "I'm Christina Ricci, without the T or I and add an E!" Everyone stood there confused, she was annoyed, so she stormed off. She never returned to that apartment ever again. Which is fine, because she later realized she was at the wrong party. She now lives in New York City.