Director: Michael Showalter
Cast: Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani
Rating: 3/5
Review: It's fair to say that the news is pretty grim right now, so when a film comes along that requires essentially zero brain power, it comes as something of a relief. Cue The Lovebirds, another of Netflix's lockdown viewing collection in which an arguing couple become inadvertently embroiled in some form of crime syndicate on their way to a friend's dinner party. Sound familiar? That's because The Lovebirds is far from original territory - how many times have we seen the fraught couple unite the battle the odds and save their relationship? - and yet, it's not without its charms. Firstly, Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani are both very watchable screen presences, and there is certainly a fizzing level of chemistry between them that makes their relationship quite believable. Similarly, some of the smaller jokes work quite well, with a woke white couple ringing the police to report the initial crime with the comment 'she just happens to be African American and he's a minority' - there's also a quip later on about police racism. The film falls flat, however, when the pair find themselves seated in a theatre at a masquerade orgy, and the humour inevitably dries up: the film's strength undoubtedly lies in its observances of the little things, and this bizarre climax (no pun intended) just sits awkwardly with the previously more relatable scenarios. And the ending? Well, it's completely predictable, but once again it's Rae and Nanjiani who somehow manage to guide the film safely home.
A COVID-19 Must-Watch?: It's pretty lighthearted fare that doesn't reinvent the wheel in any way, but some timely jokes and the chemistry of the two leads raises the film that smidge above average.
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