[Film Review] Game Night (2018) 5.9/10

Marcelina 2022-03-24 09:01:34

A reveal-after-reveal black comedy grinds out the perennial problems of a man's sibling pressure and a woman's natalism instinct to actuate an unexpected game night which goes very much awry for the game-loving couple Max (Bateman) and Annie (McAdams), and their equally game friends.

Director duoDaley and Goldstein sustains a care-free, jaunty pace from the word go and never subverts the good vibes with menace from a criminal underworld, summoning three heterosexual couples to solve a blundering kidnap mystery game of Max's brother Brooks (Chandler), ostensibly spurred by material gain, the plot is pretty derivative and seems to been left on the shelf at least for more than a decade, before being dusted off with a few more twists to spice it up, a frivolously and persistently needling spat between the African-American couple Kevin and Michelle (Morris and Bunbury), is for him to find out who is the celebrity she slept with 10 years ago during their cooling-off period, and the answer is none other than Denzel Washington, albeit a fake one, who is 54 years old in 2008 while Bunbury is barely 19,egregious daddy issue is too passé for 2018, guys!

A third pair is a harebrained jock Ryan (Magnussen) and his new date Sarah (British comedienne Horgan), an elder but much more sharp-witted companion compared to his usual one-off bimbos, a slavish opposite attraction byplay but sparks don't fly high. Although it is nice to see Bateman, Hall and Chandler, three TV leading man congregated together to engage some generic action and harmless laughter, the real scene-stealer here is Jesse Plemons, aka. the poor man's Matt Damon (although I will bet anyone that he will notch up an Oscar for acting sooner than his more prestigious doppelgänger), as the creepy neighbor Gary, straddling mischievously between the elaborated master-mind and the valiant policeman, and irrefutably, the least obnoxious character among the posse.

And that's it, GAME NIGHT is a fun choice for a movie night, preferably with friends, not too ambitious but there is enough spontaneous laughter to cherish, in tandem with a mild distaste of its cavalier attitude of mollycoddling the lowest common denominator.

companion piece: Joel Edgerton's THE GIFT (2015, 6.6/10).

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Extended Reading
  • Donnell 2022-03-18 09:01:03

    Hey evil boss. To have a sequel. The big stupid handsome guy turned out to be from Harvard. Tucao Norton! I actually saw the handsome comparison of michael CHall! ! ! Okay, I prefer the part where the male protagonist is aggrieved. The blood in the room is also funny. Little men are always good comedy material. Tucao natural + intensive, every American is so interesting

  • Ruthe 2022-04-22 07:01:06

    65/100 The comedy variant of "Mind Game", which is better than the overall style is relaxed + pleasant, and has a good entertainment quality. It is the plot involving the various interpersonal relationships of the male protagonist that pops up from time to time. It still reminds me that this is what Hollywood gives to the middle class. (Male) It would be better for me if I could do a commercial movie model for decompression.

Game Night quotes

  • Kevin: That's a strong glass table.

  • Annie: [as Annie is playing with a fake gun, she quotes Pulp Fiction] Any of you fucking pricks move, I'm gonna execute every motherfucking last one of you!