A Simple Favor

A fan of both Gossip Girl and Pitch Perfect, I was excited to see both Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick star in a movie, of my favourite genre, together. The movie instantly engaged me creating two very distinct and different characters that were brought together because of their children. I also enjoyed the fact that the two were mothers, it brought a different, unusual, dynamic to it that similar films (e.g: Gone Girl) lacked.

While I was engaged by the plot and the characters within it (I thoroughly enjoyed Blake Lively’s performance as ‘Emily’) I was struck by how similar it was to other films of the genre, how many of the clichés it had and how easily I (mostly) guessed the plotline because of the amount of similar films I had already watched.

Despite its predictability, it was entertaining and something I would definitely watch again, partly due to the story and partly to do with the chemistry between Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively. The characters they played were well developed and the music choices furthered their characterisation, especially the use of French music for the character of ‘Emily’ (Lively) which developed her character in a way that couldn’t have been done by acting alone. Despite how much I enjoyed watching, I got lost at the end of the movie as it spiralled into complete chaos and didn’t seem to end and not only that, I couldn’t decide what type of movie it was, it wasn’t funny enough to be a comedy or serious enough to be a thriller which detracted from an otherwise, well-acted and enjoyable movie.

A Simple Favor provides thrills and somewhat unexpected twists but an inconsistent tone and unconvincing plot limit it's true successes. Although A Simple Favor is a surprisingly original take on the 'who-dun-it' genre it fails to blend comedy and mystery creating a sometimes cringy blend. Nevertheless, it is worth the viewing and most mystery film lovers should enjoy the experience.