Someone Great is a 2019 romantic comedy set after a devastating break up on the eve of a young woman’s cross-country move.
The ‘modern’ romcom is an evolving species of course, changing with the times, and a such, each works hard to be up with (and maybe set) the trends. In that sense, writer and director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson‘s latest effort for Netflix does just that, stuffed with the fast-paced social media-exposed hyperbolic lifestyle we come to expect in movies like this, tackling the hardships of love and growth for twenty-somethings with plenty of energy and an uncommon respect for those it targets.
Jenny Young (Gina Rodriguez) is about to embark on a new life, getting a chance to move across country from New York City to LA as a writer for Rolling Stone. It’s a dream come true and would be a day to celebrate yet a couple of things are putting a damper on that. First, she’ll have to say goodbye to her two best friends Erin (DeWanda Wise) and Blair (Brittany Snow), but worse, her boyfriend of nine years, Nate (LaKeith Stanfield) dumps her. Now, as she reflects on her relationship and the impending move, she spends the day trying to cope.
High energy is the name of the game with Someone Great a comedy made on rocket fuel as the three women run like bulls in a China shop over the story, and though that’s coming out like a bad thing, really isn’t. It rarely has a single authentic moment and yet feels on point as these girls take command of every situation they’re in. A day in the life for these three is one packed with light drug use, casual sex, high-caloric food, a music concert, and much, much more. All the while, it takes breaks to look back on the formative moments in Jenny and Nate’s relationship, these often quieter flashbacks a nice balance to the momentum.
That begins with a wonderfully creative montage at the start where, with social media profiles and updates, we witness in only a few minutes, a supercut of Nate and Jenny (along of course with Lorde‘s Supercut on the soundtrack). Certainly, Someone Great isn’t all that innovative when it comes to the standards of break ups and such, but at least it jumps in the water head first. Love is messy and being human even more so. Robinson isn’t taking shots at or making commentary on either, simply telling a story of two bound up in being both.
Does it work? Yeah, for the most part. Like most in the genre, keeping the laughs even with the drama doesn’t always click, the film often struggling to keep it on track. There is no larger message in the end, nor I guess should there be. Look for cameos by RuPaul and Rosario Dawson to add some spice, though they tend only to distract. While the girls are undeniably fun to watch, they do get a little too scripted, as Robinson indulges in bits that keep this trying to be meta while refusing to let anyone take a breath. Some clever ideas and a few good performances help. It’s a shot in the arm and then fades away.