Review: 'Another Simple Favor' falls flat in overstuffed, twist-heavy sequel
Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively return for an Italian misadventure that’s big on plot twists, light on chemistry, and anything but simple
Spoiler Alert: This review contains spoilers for “Another Simple Favor.”
Within seconds of the lights dimming at "Another Simple Favor," the woman next to me pulled an entire bottle of Pinot Grigio out of her purse. I can only assume this is exactly how Blake Lively would want her new movie to be enjoyed — tipsy, giggling, and blissfully unaware of what’s actually happening onscreen.
I can confirm the refills were flowing and our friend was having the time of her life in what she called “the best movie ever.”
For the rest of us, though, I’m not sure any number of bottles could make this messy, try-hard disaster tolerable.
“Another Simple Favor” reunites Stephanie Smothers (Anna Kendrick), the perky, overachieving single mom turned influencer-podcaster-sleuth, and Emily Nelson (Blake Lively), the chic sociopath with a closet full of secrets and martini glasses. Despite a 20-year sentence for double murder at the end of the first film, Emily’s fresh out the slammer and she knows who her first call will be to: her old bestie, Stephanie.
Naturally, it’s every girl’s dream to have the woman who landed you in prison beside you on your big day. That’s right, Emily is preparing to marry a wealthy Italian businessman (aka mobster), and she wants Stephanie to be her maid of honor. The catch? Well, there are plenty, but the wedding is in Capri, Italy, which gives “Another Simple Favor” an excuse to to try and channel its inner “White Lotus.”
As expected, things go off the rails with a murder, an investigation, and — plot twist — another few murders. We’re really going big this time around.
If “A Simple Favor” was a cocktail of camp and mystery, sleekly shaken with a twist of satire, this sequel is the same drink, left out in the sun, warm and diluted with way too much garnish. Director Paul Feig returns, doubling – maybe even quadrupling – down on everything that made the original a guilty pleasure, trying way too hard to be camp without understanding what makes camp fun in the first place. Only this time, it’s not guilty in the fun way. It’s guilty of being one big mess.
The chemistry between Kendrick and Lively, the supposed engine of this franchise, is totally stalled. Kendrick is operating at an 11 on the quirky dial, flailing through each scene with exaggerated cheekiness, while Lively plays a smoky, monotone seductress. They’re in two different movies entirely, and aside from a single scene late in the third act, they’re more dissonant than dynamic.
The original worked because it was stylish and self-aware, with one big juicy twist that paid off and a plot that was silly but controlled. This sequel throws that restraint off a cliff into the Capri sea. Plot twists hit every 10 minutes like clockwork – not because they’re earned, but because the movie assumes that constant chaos equals entertainment. Spoiler: It doesn’t.
But the big twist? If you thought long-lost twins were a stretch in the first film, buckle up – turns out there’s a third sister. They were triplets all along! Does it really count as a surprise if it’s the same twist you used last time? And with the ending teasing a possible third installment, don’t be surprised if we get a fourth sibling soon. Maybe they’re not triplets – maybe they’re quadruplets. Who’s to say? Certainly not the screenwriters, who clearly have a dartboard labeled “Next Plot Twist” in the writers' room.
The timing of this sequel doesn’t do it any favors, either. Seven years after the first film it’s not like speed was important for anyone when it came to a sequel, which makes this direct-to-streaming drop feel like a misfire considering Lively is still recovering from the public relations implosion of “It Ends With Us.” With public sentiment at perhaps an all-time low towards the Lively-Reynolds industrial complex, giving this film some breathing room from the chaos could have helped it out the slightest bit.
At its best, this movie is background noise for a wine-fueled girls’ night. At its worst, it’s a cynical attempt to squeeze one more drop of relevance out of a movie that already had its moment. “Another Simple Favor” tries to be sharp, sexy, and suspenseful – but it’s just sloppy.
Star Rating: 1 out of 5
“Another Simple Favor” releases on Prime Video on May 1.