Brief Story Line
Zara (Joey King - Bullet Train, The Princess etc) was a 24 year old woman had been working as the personal assistant to famous movie star Chris Cole (Zac Efron - Ricky Stanicky, Fire Starter etc) for few years. She had been aspiring to be a producer, but had to endure the ridiculous requests from Chris and had no clarity on her future.
Zara's life was turned upside down when Chris somehow fell for her mother Brooke (Nicole Kidman - The Undoing mini series, Lion etc) who had been widowed for quite some time. Despite the strong objection from Zara due to the age difference and personal relation, Brooke's mother in-law Leila (Kathy Bates - Richard Jewell, Primary Colors etc) seemed to be more receptive to the idea.
So how would the story conclude? You could find out in this movie.
End of Brief Story Line
It has been quite some time since I last saw a new rom-com movie, so it was quite refreshing especially after watching series that drained emotions a bit. And this movie actually had an interesting premise which seemed to promise plenty of humorous situation. When I watched this from beginning, it was OK but not exactly great. The story only became interesting when Chris finally met Brooke with the complication of Zara's obvious rejection and complaints.
The thing that I liked about this one was the not so straight forward ending, unlike the typical rom-com where we already know how it would end even from the start. So in here we did not just enjoy the journey but also guessing the way it would end. To be honest I was not that convinced on the chemistry between Chris and Brooke, although individually their characters were well-written to my opinion. I read divisive opinion by critics on the chemistry between Zac Efron and Nicole Kidman, but I agreed on their view of Kathy Bates who played such a kind and warm-hearted motherly character. Personally I did not like Zara's character too much here due to her immaturity and selfishness.
Apart from those names above, there were also support cast of Liza Koshy (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts etc) as Zara's best friend Eugenie and Sherry Cola (Good Troubles TV series etc) as Stella, the struggling writer that Zara support. The movie was written by Carrie Solomon and directed by Richard LaGravenese whose prior experience included P.S. I Love You, Beautiful Creatures and writer of critically acclaimed films like The Fisher King and The Bridges of Madison County. So he is no stranger to success, but it appeared this time the critics were not impressed with his direction.
Overall to me this was a so so rom-com movie. It had some charm but not consistent enough, and the comedy was not truly felt except for the one time when Zara found out about Brooke and Chris for the first time. The romance was OK, though not the kind that was truly delightful for audience. I think the best moment was the first date between Chris and Brooke. I like Kathy Bates' character the most while Joey King's the least, though I have no complaint on her acting. And the duration of 111 minutes felt a bit too long for me for this genre. So if you are looking for a very charming romantic comedy that has a standard story, then this might not be too satisfying. But if you are into something which might be a little different, then you could give this a try.
Mike's movie moments rating: 3 out of 5 stars
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