Blockers Review
R: Crude and sexual content, and language throughout, drug content, teen partying, and some graphic nudity
Universal Pictures, Good Universe, Point Grey
1 Hr and 42 Minutes
Director: Kay Cannon | Writers: Brian Kehoe, Jim Kehoe, Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg, Eben Russell
Cast: Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz, John Cena, Kathryn Newton, Gideon Adlon, Geraldine Viswanathan, Graham Phillips, Miles Robbins, Jimmy Bellinger, June Diane Raphael, Hannibal Buress, Sarayu Blue
I’m going to lay it right out there: I wasn’t looking forward to this movie at all. With every “Blockers” trailer I saw, I dreaded more and more the day I had to sit in the theater to watch a comedy whose previews didn’t even amuse me. It has a plot that I just scoffed at and thought was way too stupid. In other words, I just wrote this movie off as another raunchy comedy from Universal.
Now having seen it, I have to admit that I was incredibly wrong about this, for “Blockers” might have to be one of the most progressive raunchy comedies of the decade.
When three parents stumble upon their daughters' pact to lose their virginity at prom, they launch a covert one-night operation to stop the teens from sealing the deal.
THE GOOD
From the trailer, I immediately got the huge impression that our three leads (Mann, Barinholtz, and Cena) were three best friends who had this one goal to cockblock their daughters.
NOOOPE! These are parents who are committed to their children, but always avoided each other. So, once they have this unifying goal, they are forced to get closer.
Mann’s Lisa is the overbearing single mom who is way too close to her daughter.
Barinholtz’s Hunter is the unfiltered deadbeat who just wants to do right by his daughter.
Cena’s Mitch is the overprotective dad who just wants to be his daughter’s hero.
Their dynamic is entertaining because they don’t get along. It's a layer of realism that is unexpected from the film where, as the story progresses, their characters begin to grow and have their own arc.
After beating the “American Pie” formula to the ground, since four of the writers (two uncredited) wrote and were involved with the “American Pie” movies, they decided to switch it up by changing the gender and, for the most part, it works.
Think about it! “American Pie” focused on this group of guys trying to lose their virginity before/during prom. “Blockers” is primarily focused on these girls trying to lose their virginity during prom. What “Blockers” advances on, as opposed to sex comedies such as “American Pie”, is the three girls actually delving into what sex means to them while exploring their sexuality.
In “American Pie”, they practically just treated sexuality as a joke, but here it is both the comedic and emotional theme that is rather bittersweet. These girls aren’t obnoxiously horny like the dudes from “American Pie”, but are more curious. The characters (played by Kathryn Newton, Gideon Adlon, and Geraldine Viswanathan) have a magnetic bond and you understand that having sex isn’t just a priority for experience, but makes them feel more connected with each other.
Even individually their characters hold their own.
Newton’s Julie is a dreamer who wants her night to be perfect.
Viswanathan’s Kayla impulsively wants to make the most out of her night by trying every drink and substance she can.
Adlon’s Sam tries to come out to her friends, but is faking the pact so she won’t feel left out.
The film may be written by way too many dudes, but the direction by Kay Cannon (who wrote “Pitch Perfect”) keeps the film grounded. If this movie was directed by anyone else, it would’ve been way too screwball, but thankfully Cannon keeps everyone on the same playing field. This is the first time I see all the teenagers in a film act like actual teenagers. These girls are so hysterical and earnest that sometimes you wish the film focused more on them than the adults. Out of the three, Viswanathan had me cracking up the most because of her timing and the direct bluntness of her character. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up on SNL some time down the road.
THE BAD
An issue I have with studio comedies that barely gets better is the editing where continuity is not a priority. Every other shot doesn’t maintain continuity where it's sometimes spliced together like a vlog. “Game Night” kind of upped the ante on studio comedies because that was a clever comedy that had style with its direction and consistent editing. Another studio comedy trope that is also a nuisance is the poor ADR work. A lot of improvised voice-work is done off-screen and sounds as if the characters are 2 inches away, but in the next shot you see that the characters are about two yards away.
John Cena has come a long away from starting his comedic career with those “Fred” movies. Granted, we don’t talk about the existence of those movies, but it did spark a lil fire in Cena’s soul and now we see him primarily in comedies. When it comes to the characters, Cena is unfortunately the weakest link of the three. His dynamic with his daughter and the journey he goes through is just not strong enough. Mann’s arc is emotional and so is Barinholtz’s because there are some stakes with their characters and their relationship with their daughters. Shoot, Barinholtz has a moment that had me on the verge of tears. Mitch’s arc isn’t as grand as his comrades’. What they fail in character they make up in gags. They give Cena some of the best gross-out gags the film has to offer where every highlight of the biggest laughs comes from him. Cena gives the best expression and is pretty much putting in the work, but when he has to be serious, Mitch doesn't have much to work with.
LAST STATEMENT
Consistently hilarious with an unexpected nuanced story and rather developed script, “Blockers” is a fun, modernized teen sex comedy with a hilarious ensemble and a welcoming directorial debut by Kay Cannon.
Rating: 3.5/5 | 74%
Super Scene: Lisa’s great escape.
