I had the opportunity to screen Nicol Paone’s directorial debut FRIENDSGIVING and I can sum it up like this, I literally spent 95 minutes watching the worst fictional Thanksgiving ever filmed.
Here’s the synopsis: Abby is looking forward to a laid-back Thanksgiving with her best friend Molly. But the friends’ plans for a quiet turkey dinner go up in smoke when they’re joined by Molly’s new boyfriend and her flamboyant mother. Throw in some party crashers including Molly’s old flame, a wannabe shaman, and a trio of Fairy Gay Mothers, and it’s a recipe for a comically chaotic holiday no one will ever forget—even if they wanted to!
Y’all it’s like each cast member – except the adorable baby boy – decided to throw caution (and the script) to the wind and improvise the entire movie. More sad to think that they didn’t and the story was actually written (mostly) as such.
What could have been a hilarious romp with an all-star cast that includes Malin Akerman (Watchmen), Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls), Aisha Tyler (Archer), and Deon Cole (Barbershop: The Next Cut, Black*ish) – with special appearances by Wanda Sykes and Margaret Cho – is instead a disappointing film that throws comedic punches that don’t quite land.
I wanted very much to enjoy the movie, but ended up finding it more crude than comic and with way too much going on. I really hate scoring below a 2 family, but I honestly can’t score this higher – 1 out of 5 beats on the MMTrometer.
FRIENDSGIVING is available in theaters, On Demand and Digital on October 23, and on Blu-Ray and DVD on October 27.
Until next thought, Thomasena
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