A Simple Favor

It's a shame the film wasn't a bit more comedic and that the humor started to veer away from seriousness and attempts at suspense as time went on, because both actresses are amazing and the potential was great. Given that Paul Feig decided to use (almost) only French songs, he might as well have made something in the style of French comedies. (2020-07-28)

An inoffensive female thriller from the hard-working Paul Feig, but unfortunately for me a rip-off of the much better Gone Girl. Anna Kendrick is such a cute dork in almost every movie and I don’t mind, opposite her is Blake Lively playing a cynical bitch here and again she is insanely hot. The film is well paced, offers the occasional humorous interlude and is suspenseful in places. It also offers a few twists, but they won't surprise those who have seen Gone Girl. Too bad it was too predictable for me and it didn't offer anything violent or subversive, but I suspect it is aimed primarily at a female audience, so that's fine. As a light thriller one-shot it works. 65% (2018-12-26)

Blake Lively is always nice to look at, so I wasn't worried about the aesthetic aspect of the film. It soon became clear that the script wouldn't be a disappointment either. Anna Kendrick played another one of those goofy characters that suit her so well. Even though I didn't exactly roll on the floor laughing, I had a very good time. When it comes to thrillers, I’m used to the fact that there is a twist at the end. Here, there was more than just one and they all worked out really well. (2019-05-05)

I consider movies with Blake Lively my private guilty pleasures. I'll check out Darcey Bell's book, but I definitely wouldn't be interested in a thriller like this without the movie. However, as a spectacle based on the contrasting talents of Blake and Anna Kendrick, it was a treat. A treat for the eyes. (2022-07-03)

A non-alcoholic version of Gone Girl for a less demanding or, if you want, weekend audience. The lightness and briskness is taken care of by the geeky Anna Kendrick and the sexy Blake Lively. Both are excellent, it's just the script and the plot that are questionable. That said, as a light crime-comedy it’s still bearable. (2019-02-04)