TRAINWRECK (Judd Apatow). 122 minutes. Opens Friday (July 17). Rating: NNNN
Where to watch: iTunes
After three seasons of her hilarious TV show Inside Amy Schumer, stand-up Schumer makes a remarkably smooth transition to feature films as Amy, a sexually confident magazine writer at a men’s magazine who falls for Aaron (Bill Hader), a celebrity sports doctor who’s the subject of her latest article.
The problem is that her crass, bigoted, divorced dad (a beautifully cast Colin Quinn), who’s now in a retirement home, has taught her that relationships don’t work out. And although baby sister Kim (Brie Larson) has made the marriage thing work, Amy prefers her one-night stands and her sex-only relationship with a muscle-bound guy (wrestler John Cena) who wants something more yet is probably closeted.
The first act of the film plays like a Samantha plot from Sex And The City, with lots of gags about Amy’s working environment (Tilda Swinton steals scenes as her bullying editor) and the fact that the rom-com tables have been turned. Aaron and LeBron James (one of many NBA players playing themselves) sensitively discuss the doctor’s relationship with Amy, while she and her gal pal (Vanessa Bayer) act like typical bros.
But then it morphs into something deeper, as Amy gets to the root of her commitment issues.
This being a Judd Apatow movie, it goes on about 10 minutes too long, and there are some fumblings before the final, surprisingly charming climax.
But I’m not sure what you’d cut. The baby shower scene that includes cameos by comics Nikki Glaser, Tim Meadows, Kyle Dunnigan and Bridget Everett? The parody of a bad indie film featuring Daniel Radcliffe and Marisa Tomei? The hilarious gag of Hader playing one-on-one with LeBron?
Schumer, who wrote the script, and Apatow even throw in a meta-joke about Woody Allen’s use of George Gershwin and the Brooklyn Bridge in his films, and it gets a huge laugh.
Schumer’s timing is note perfect, not just on the comic beats but with the dramatic lines as well, while Hader is endearing without being a pushover. None of the comic actors – including Mike Birbiglia in a sweet role – plays for the laughs, which makes them even stronger when they come.
As someone who thought the romantic comedy genre was dead, I’m glad to say it’s still got some life in it. And this could be the first one where, thanks to the sports cameos, straight men being dragged along by their wives and girlfriends might not be rolling their eyes.
That’s a first.
