SNATCHED review

SNATCHED

starring Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn

directed by Jonathan Levine

A review by Helen J. Reynolds


A movie about the perils of travelling abroad; Emily (Amy Schumer) has just been dumped and left with non-refundable tickets to Ecuador. With no gal pals to help her through this crisis, Emily turns instead - as we all do - to mother knows best, here played by Goldie Hawn. 

The trailer sells it as a hilarious ride - imagine being on vay-k getting beach drunk and trying to hook up with guys but with your over-protective mum standing with the sunscreen behind you? Oh, and they get kidnapped too. Funny, no?

Well, no is about right. The jokes are predictable and the pace is whacked so that even if a line is funny, it's got no time to land. Ironically, there's even a 'falling-to-his-death' cliff scene that's over before the guy hits the floor. In another example, characters rush out the door after a 'blink-and-you-miss-it' interrogation, all the while joking about how quickly they got the info. It took maybe a whole two seconds of screen time?

Either the writer, Katie Dippold (The Heat, Ghostbusters), has no confidence in her comedy or is under the impression that audiences have no attention span, so best crack a joke a minute.

Yet the story isn't without potential. The use of social media in break-up scenarios is always going to be relevant but other than a few selfies and a Facebook convo, that's pretty much it. The fact that she doesn't have friends really hurts the movie. Emily's character tries to be an updated Bridget Jones but lacks the substance; jobs, friends, even her ex are just thrown away and don't flesh out her character enough so we can like her. Ridiculous situations, rather than endearing us, show her mostly as naive and selfish. The only relationship we do get is with her family, which feels forced to say the least.  

Other points, such as how westerners go to places like South America to enjoy the beaches and the booze but without caring about the culture, get brought up by the kidnappers, of all people. A fair comment, which is then regurgitated so that Emily feels she should empower the women of a normal village who do all the work while the men protect them. Right. Because sexism only happens in poor countries.

Amy Schumer is the draw of the film and, luckily, she's a great comedic actress who delivers in every scene. She also promotes a strong body image - she's as sexy as the movie is bad. The script is ultimately where this film fails but that's not on Schumer. 

A combination of:
Trainwreck (2015)
The Heat (2013)
Bridge Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004)

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