When it comes to love, Maddie (Jennifer Lawrence) has never been able to settle with the man of her dreams. Maddie works as an Uber driver, but life generally isn’t looking too bright for her. Currently, she is fighting to save her home, and to make matters worse, her car has been towed away by one of her past lovers. Without a vehicle, Maddie cannot work and earn money to save her house. At this point, Maddie would do anything to get out of trouble.
When Maddie is looking for other forms of work and a quick income, she reads a job listing from wealthy parents. The rich parents (Laura Benanti and Matthew Broderick) are looking for someone to “date” their nineteen-year-old son, Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman). In return, they’ll give the person a car. Percy is headed for college soon, and his parents fear that he needs to prepare for the road ahead. Hopefully, with Maddie’s help, Percy will loosen up and be more confident. The parents stress to Maddie that Percy doesn’t know about their arrangement and must never find out about it. Worried about her house and income, Maddie accepts the job and begins to go after Percy. But Maddie will find there is more to Percy than she expected and trying to “date” him won’t be such an easy task.
No Hard Feelings is best described as a raunchy romantic comedy. We follow a pair of characters who are incredibly different in every way possible. Maddie is wild, loud, rude, and fierce. Percy is not only a lot younger than Maddie, but he also enjoys keeping to himself, is shy, lacks friends, enjoys gaming, and avoids parties and physical interactions. This is not your typical, familiar kind of romantic film.
The film has many one-liners, random gags, crudeness, and shocking moments played for laughs. While I didn’t laugh out loud at any moment, I did find myself chuckling through the entire duration with a significant smile. The reason for this is the performances of our two leads, who carry great comedic chemistry. Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman are excellent on-screen together, and their jokes and lines of dialogue played back and forth are electric and joyful. Their presence on-screen is just fantastic and, at times, even touching and heartfelt. Granted, a few gags delivered by side characters don’t always quite land the joke, but there’s no fault surrounding the leads and their personalities.
Overall, No Hard Feelings is an easy recommendation if you seek a film with some laughs, romance and perhaps something that is a little naughty. It’s a fun film that follows two unlikely characters with a heartfelt connection despite being from different worlds. I found myself grinning and chuckling for the entire runtime of this film, and there are plenty of moments, including during the final moments, that are unexpecting and surprising. The performances from Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman are excellent, and like the storyline, they both bring something entertaining and unexpected.
7.1/10
21st June 2023
Written by Peter Walkden
WALKDEN ENTERTAINMENT
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