- Release year: 2024
- Director: Richard LaGravenese.
- Producers: Jeff Kirschenbaum and Joe Roth.
- Screenplay by: Carrie Solomon.
- Cinematography by: Don Burgess.
- Music by: Siddhartha Khosla.
Synopsis: an actor starts a relationship with his PA’s mother. His assistant is not too happy about it.
Shotgun Commentary: the cheap version of The Idea of You (2024).
Source: A Family Affair (Richard LaGravenese, 2024).
Review
A Family Affair is a boring, cliché love story that mimics any fan fiction made for women in their 50s. In fact, it is worse, because probably some of those actually have something to say, something new to bring to the table. This film has none of that.
Nap material
What begins as a stereotypical, albeit fun film, quickly turns into an oversimplified, ridiculous story. Zara (Joey King) is actor Chris Cole’s (Zac Efron) personal assistant. He is the worst boss ever, so she quits. After an abrupt and forced encounter between Chris and Zara’s mum Brooke (Nicole Kidman) that involves random day drinking and a plot so ridiculous it would look moronic even as the beginning of a pornographic movie, Zara finds them having sex and flips out. The rest of the film explores how the three navigate their new situation.
As it has been mentioned before, this feature brings absolutely nothing new to the table. Their age difference is barely a subject, the drama is dull and nonsensical, and the comedy is barely there. Characters change for no reason, their reactions are inexplicable, they apologise for doing the right thing, they justify wrongdoings… It’s an upside down world where the characters have no space for growth, they simply change out of nowhere when the script needs them to.
Source: A Family Affair (Richard LaGravenese, 2024).
The most heartbreaking bit of this whole catastrophe is Nicole Kidman’s involvement in all this. Efron has played roles like this before, in movies even more absurd, so it’s no surprise to see him back to what he knows how to do most. As for King, her tendency to overact is perfect for a comedy like this one. Furthermore, she delivers the only two comical moments of the film. However, Kidman’s presence in a film like this is nothing short of tragic.
The cataclysm
It is surprising to see such an incredibly talented actress in a low quality movie like this. It remains a mystery why she would accept such a project. Nevertheless, the real disaster is not so much her decision to be there, but how she’s there. As an evil stepmother in The Northman (2022), her acting abilities, the nature of her character, and a clever game of lights and shadow, mask her lack of facial movement enough to not be a big issue. Sadly, in a comedy like this one, where everything is well illuminated, there is nowhere to hide.
One doesn’t need to have an issue with plastic surgery to recognise how badly it can affect an actor’s abilities. While everyone should be encouraged to do what makes them feel their best, when your facial expressions are your bread and butter, you need to take care of them. During the whole film, you are forced to watch a once gifted actress struggle to show any emotion behind a huge mask of Botox that gives her the emotional range of a ventriloquist dummy.
All in all, A Family Affair focuses on all the wrong things, resulting in a surreal, illogical story where actors either over or under express their emotions. Whatever message they were trying to send with this film, if any at all, is completely lost in all the nonsense. It would be great if at least this was good for a “turn your brain off” situation, but there are already so many great romcoms for that. Do not waste your time with this one.
Advice to take from this movie:
- When your mother is sleeping with your boss, from whom you’re trying to get a promotion, maybe the problem is not the age difference?
- Exposing someone’s true nature in order to protect someone you love from getting hurt is NOT something you should be apologetic about. EVER.
- If you value your ability to show emotions and have a wide range of facial expressions, think twice about the plastic surgeries you have made and the professionals you hire to do them.
- PAs are not mothers, they don’t need to take sh*t from their clients because they did not raise them to be *ssholes. Mothers shouldn’t have to either, but they do carry part of the blame for how their kids turn up.
(Richard LaGravenese, 2024).
What’s your take? Have you watched A Family Affair? Did you find it funny? Did you read anything into it that I might have missed?
Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀