Quiz Lady is a comedy about Anne(Awkwafina) a restrained, game-show obsessed accountant who has to reconnect with her estranged free-spirit sister Jenny(Sandra Oh) in order to settle their mother's gambling debts. The plan the two hatch is to get Anne on her favorite TV show Can't Stop The Quiz(a Jeopardy stand in) to make the required money.
Awkwafina plays somewhat against type, although she played a similarly grounded character in The Farewell, as the straight person to Oh's much more flamboyant Jenny. And yet Awkwafina continues to prove her range and her bonafides as a not-to-be-ignored Gen Y star. She's funny, she's emotional, and she's real. Oh clearly relishes the opportunity here as she is also cast against type, she's big, brash, colorful, and really funny. The two have pitch perfect chemistry and navigate this relatively straight forward feel good comedy with the kind of movie star wattage that turns this decent script into a great film. The supporting cast are all really fun, particularly Will Farrell as Terry the game show host(his best performance in years) and Jason Schwartzman as Ron the raining champion when Anne finally makes it to the show. With a limited budget and a limited cast the movie is able to provide what many big budget films this year have failed- entertainment, heart, a coherent journey.
Like most comedies there is not much room or money for production artistry so it is fairly nuts-and-bolts here but it all works, it is all evocative. Anne's home, her work, and the bowtie wall at Can't Stop The Quiz are all wonderful sets and prove, that even within the confines of the genre and budget, they are able to do some pretty cool stuff to help build out the world.
The biggest disappointment here is not with the film itself but the fact it was released straight-to-streaming. This would have been better in a full theater where the laughter and experience could be shared and the choice not to is baffling especially considering the recent dearth of new releases due to the strike(s). Would this have been a world wide sensation? No. But would it have recouped its budget and then some and provided the movie going public with some much needed variety? Absolutely.
Currently streaming on Hulu.
Don't Miss It.
No comments:
Post a Comment