You’d think that a movie featuring the film industry’s most notorious heartthrob and two cute, funny sidekicks would be worth some recognition; unfortunately, That Awkward Moment is–need I say it–descriptive of the way you feel throughout the majority of this film.
The movie, directed by Tom Gormican, centers around three best friends and their girl troubles, and that is essentially all that goes on: a never-ending stream of love-triangles and living in lust that leads these three young men to make a pact to stray from any “serious” relationships in order to make their friend feel better about his recent divorce. This very predictable and basic plot can only lead viewers to one assumption: each of the men will be undeniably beaten by love, and in the end, will realize the error of their ways.
There’s Jason (Zac Efron) who falls for a woman he thought at first was a hooker; Mikey (Michael B. Jordan) a successful doctor upset at a sudden divorce; and Daniel (Miles Teller) who falls for his best friend, and whose love story is the most endearing and believable.
Certain scenes in this movie are actually funny, but others are just uncomfortable and strange (should I bring up Jason’s misunderstanding of the dress-up party?) and the attempt at making the movie quirky and cute falls flat quite often. Not to mention, the occurrences are hardly relatable, as 99% of what goes on would never actually happen in normal life. Ellie (Imogen Poots) and Jason make a strange pair, as their dialogue seems forced at times and her character often comes across as mousy and annoying (her Taylor Momsen look is very forced-“hipster”). And the cliched “I’ll show up at some important event and make some powerful speech that will make you come back to me” is worn down with use; I could only react with an exasperated “Oh, give me a break”.
Mikey’s relationship with his wife felt just as tiring; as aforementioned, Daniel and Chelsea (Mackenzie Davis) are the only pair I found myself rooting for, as their affection seemed genuine and adorable.
The movie was salvaged from its complete downfall by comedic genius Miles Teller, delivering his clever lines in his amusing southern accent; and perhaps by its alleged theme of “nobody’s perfect”. In other aspects, it disappoints–unless, of course, you’re looking for a typical Rom-Com with a few explicit scenes and plenty of foul language.
It seems that, with a title that was until recently a common phrase among youth, so much more could have been done, and none of it necessarily required the film be R-rated. The movie itself is a witless sex comedy that proves there’s a limit to how much you can do with such a tacky, overused plot line. At the very least, these 94 minutes are tolerable, but I would hesitate to sit through them again. Efron, Teller, and Jordan deserved better lines and better roles, but this we can blame on Gormican. Score: 5/10.
Nataly Capote/A&E Editor
