Snatched

Movie Name: Snatched
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Jonathan Levine

Stars: Amy Schumer, Goldie Hawn, Joan Cusack, Ike Barinholtz, Wanda Sykes, Tom Bateman, Christopher Meloni, Oscar Jaenada, Bashir Salahuddin

Genre: Comedy

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
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Synopsis:

Director Jonathan Levine continues his track record of tackling offbeat comedic material, following his previous films "Warm Bodies" and "The Night Before". This time around the story focuses on Emily Middleton, a thirty something woman, who gets fired from her sales assistant job, and whose boyfriend also breaks up with her. Since Emily has already booked a trip to Ecuador, and none of her friends wants to travel with her, she decides to invite her lonesome mother to tag along. After much resistance, Linda finally caves in, and both women find themselves in a beautiful resort in Ecuador. While there Emily flirts with a handsome gentleman by the name of Tom, who turns out has a hidden agenda, that gets both women in trouble. It's up to them, with the help of their brother/son Jeffrey, to figure out a way to escape unscathed.
"Snatched" is a film that definitely promises a lot more than it delivers. It's essentially a vehicle for the comedic talents of Amy Schumer, however her trademark type of humor is aggressively diluted. What has made Amy Schumer such a refreshing presence in comedy, is her point of view, one that challenges perceptions about typical female stereotypes, alongside her candor and self deprecating style. While some of that can be seen as the film initially starts, as the narrative unfolds, it quickly becomes something quite conventional, standard, and ultimately forgettable. The script definitely lacks a biting satire, and the whole "Fish out of water" and "Growing up" lessons that it delivers, feel like something that has been done in more compelling ways in much better and iconic films (it's interesting how there's even a slight semblance to what Robert Zemeckis' "Romancing the Stone" has created, but without any of it's humor or energy). Both Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn try their hardest to make the story and character dynamics compelling, but there's too little to appreciate aside from their talents. A forgettable feature.