[rating=7.00]
The release of Blockers this week at SXSW marked an interesting shift in the tone of the fest. Acting as one of the flagship films, fest promoters released it during the 7 o’clock block, superseded by a full day of films directed by women. No coincidence considering Hollywood’s shifting attitude towards women in film, and delightful both in theory and practice. While the commercial success of Blockers has already been assured by the stellar cast and target audience, there seems to be something more to it than dick jokes and teen drama.
After snooping into their kids lives, three parents go on a wild journey to ensure their kids won’t have sex on prom night. Meanwhile, three teens make a sex pact to bang it out and lose their virginity on the same night. While riddled with predictable pop culture motifs including worrying about the secret meaning of emojis, and butt chugging, there’s a certain likeability that parades its way through the narrative, connecting both storylines in an effortless fashion.
Focusing on the relationships between three parents and their kids, the film sets up both sides of the parent/kid relationship surprisingly well. On the one hand you have a single mom, an overbearing yet sensitive father, and a mess of a human that manages to screw up most opportunities he has to help parent his kid. On the other, you have three delightful teens who have been friends since kindergarten and couldn’t be more different if they tried.
The group dynamics work nicely, and manage to give the audience a look into both the wild antics of the teens, and the worries and parenting mistakes by the adults. It’s not often you’re allowed a full view at the story, and the lack of a single perspective is endearing, and freeing.
It was a good move to bring in Kay Cannon. The screenwriter (Pitch Perfect, 30 Rock), producer, actress, and now director kept a good eye on what the audience would find funny, while also leaving a depth to the overarching story that a male director might not have found. Rather than focus on certain shots and elements, she pulls the viewer outside of the moment as a reminder to keep an eye on what has happened, and what will. Directors often seem to forget that there’s a linear storyline going on, and will leave a disconnect from one scene to another, especially in this particular genre.
Generally speaking, these gag out comedies focus on certain stereotypical groups. Teens that haven’t experienced enough of entertainment to notice they’re being played by the Hollywood system, adults that choose not to get that experience for fear of trying something new, and folks that never grew out of their teenage mindset in the first place. Rather than continue that trend, Blockers manages to diversify their audience, keeping their core viewers in place, while also finding a voice in those who wouldn’t normally be drawn to their movie.
Part of what makes it not only tolerable, but entertaining is the seemingly genuine use of power dynamic shake ups involving feminism, steering far away from the usual masculine qualities in favor of something more neutral. John Cena’s hulking mass of a character plays a passive role in his marriage with his effortlessly badass wife.
Leslie Mann’s single mom character isn’t solely defined as the single mom, but instead a decent parent who is genuinely going to miss her interactions with her daughter as she gets closer to college. And Ike Barinholtz’s cheating divorcee persona is broken by his admission to his friends that he was emotionally and physically abused by his wife, culminating in his cheating to subconsciously find a way out of their toxic marriage.
At best it’s entertaining, at worst it’s predictable and a little contrived. Overall, Blockers truly has something for everyone.
