_This review contains spoilers._
By just looking at the incredible cast working on this film, you can already tell “A Simple Favor” is going to harbor a lot of commercial success. The drama directed by Paul Feig, who’s had hits like “Ghostbusters,” “Bridesmaids” and “Spy,” features actresses Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively—a pairing I never knew I needed until now.
This movie generated a lot of interest when Blake Lively deleted her Instagram photos, leaving just an enigmatic message in her bio asking, “What happened to Emily?…” Fans were relieved to know that Lively’s gorgeous Insta pics weren’t deleted—they were just simply archived for a publicity stunt for the movie. Blake plays a character named Emily who disappears from a small town, leaving best friend Stephanie (Anna Kendrick) determined to figure out what happened. The movie also stars Henry Golding, the charming lead from “Crazy Rich Asians,” as Emily’s husband, Sean.
The movie started off lighthearted and funny, inducing plenty of easy laughter amongst the audience. Anna Kendrick proves her versatility as Stephanie, a cute and awkward single mom who is a little bit sanctimonious, but mostly means well. Stephanie runs a vlog channel catered to moms like herself.
A mom who is certainly unlike herself, though, is Emily, who cusses like a sailor, doesn’t care too much if her kid’s diet is gluten-free or not and loves a good martini every afternoon. Despite their stark differences, Emily and Stephanie somehow become friends —best friends, even—through their children. One day, Emily asks Stephanie to pick up her kid from school. Stephanie, who has a tendency to go out of her way to help people, speedily agrees to what truly seemed like a simple favor.
Stephanie does not expect Emily to go missing after that.
The movie progressively gets darker and more mysterious, with major and unexpected plot twists coming into play. Stephanie realizes she doesn’t know her supposed best friend as well as she thought, and she begins to unravel secrets about the identity Emily has been hiding. Throughout her digging, Stephanie shares her journey on her vlog. Avid viewers give tips that eventually help piece the case: Emily had drowned tragically in a lake in Michigan. Stephanie is devastated and somehow ends up hooking up with Sean on the night of Emily’s funeral. Feelings ensue, but morality does not.
When Stephanie is asked by Sean to move in, she cleans out Emily’s walk-in closet to make room for her things. The audience collectively gasps when Stephanie returns only to find that the previously emptied out closet was now full again, with Emily’s clothes back where they came from. Realizing something is disturbingly wrong, Stephanie decides to actively search and unearth some of Emily’s secrets, leading the plot to spiral into something even more twisted.
The movie has a great plot with twists that are actually surprising. The movie manages to be hilarious but frightening at the same time, without making it uncomfortably tense or just too humorous that you can’t take the dark stuff seriously. It’s a brilliant balance of dark comedy, making it fun but still clever and dramatic. The performances by Kendrick and Lively in the movie were phenomenal. Kendrick’s awkward role adds light to the movie and she executes the character development from innocent mommy to witty detective excellently. Lively also surprised me with this role. She plays the femme fatale so incredibly and manages to be hilarious at the same time. Following the success of “Crazy Rich Asians,” I was excited to see Golding’s performance as well and I wasn’t let down. I’m glad to see him exploring some different genres and characters and look forward to the expansion of his filmography.
All in all, it’s an absolutely brilliant movie with amazing actors and a clever plot. I just love that the movie does its best by not spoiling anything in the trailers or promos. It genuinely leaves your jaw dropping and laughing in disbelief by the end of the movie. Do yourself “A Simple Favor” and go watch this movie.
_Edited by Siena DeBolt | sdebolt@themaneater.com_
