Under the lens takes a deep look at films by focusing in on one or two particular areas of the picture that helped to define it for better or for worse. Spoilers will be included in this review.
Game Night is an action-comedy from directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein and stars Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, and Kyle Chandler. It follows a group of friends who meet regularly for game nights find themselves entangled in a real-life mystery when the shady brother of one of them is seemingly kidnapped by dangerous gangsters.
Under The Lens: Ensemble cast and tone of humor
Ensemble cast: Game Night has a fantastic cast including Danny Huston, Billy Magnussen, Jesse Plemons, Michael C. Hall, and Kyle Chandler. They all seem to be enjoying themselves immensely in the roles they are playing, and the picture is so stacked with talent that it enhances each scene as we get to watch all these talented actors and actresses play off each other comedically and dramatically. As touched on before each cast member has a different style of acting so it is interesting to see the mostly noncomedic actor Jesse Plemons act with Jason Bateman, it opens up a lot of scenes and allows them to breath is a way that they would not have been able to otherwise.
Tone of humor: For a comedy picture, the humor and tone of that humor are VERY important, if the humor does not land then the entire film is ruined. We have all been watching a comedy picture and sat awkwardly as a scene we know is supposed to be hilarious falls flat and we don’t even chuckle. Well thankfully this picture’s humor is just right for the style of the story being told, its zany crime narrative fits with the outlandish antics being carried out by the cast.
Highlights
There is a truly funny one-liner when Rachel McAdam’s gets a compliment from a hit-man, it’s hilarious a great tone breaking moment.
Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdam’s have great on-screen chemistry
Something to think about
Do you have a group of friends who you have game nights with? If so what kind of games do you play or would want to play?
Conclusion
Overall Game Night is a fun breezy comedy that has a great cast and a smartly written script, its slightly predictable at times, but the zany set pieces and one-liners will keep the viewer from caring about that too much. So much could have gone wrong, but in the end the cast and script anchor this picture and provide a fun few hours to escape from the pressures of life.
