Are you looking for an easygoing sex comedy that’s not too raunchy but still packs a punch? Amateur Night starring Jason Biggs of his American Pie fame is exactly that type of comedy. It’s about Guy Carter, a strapping young lad with a baby on the way and an uncertain financial future. Down on his luck, he decides to answer a Craigslist ad looking for a driver. Instead of delivering pizzas, Guy soon finds out that he’ll be driving sex workers around the city. The story is actually inspired by true events, writers and directors Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse lived through when they first came to Hollywood.
Forgettable but still entertaining enough to put you in a good mood, Amateur Night is one of those fire-and-forget movies. It requires zero effort on the part of the viewer and is perfect for weekdays when you’re struggling to find something decent to watch. To quote comrade Dyatlov: “3.6 roentgen, not great, not terrible”. While the story does revolve around sex there won’t be much nudity. However, there will be a couple of raunchy jokes and discussions. I actually laughed out loud during the scene where Guy has to clean the sex toys. Now that was a hilarious moment in the movie. There won’t be many of them though.
More of a slight-smile comedy than a laugh-out-loud riot, Amateur Night is fun but somewhat uneven. The flow is hampered by the constant back-and-forth between Guy’s wild misadventures and his pregnant wife at home. I get what they were trying to do with these transitions, but just as you settle into the raunchy sex comedy vibe, you’re suddenly thrown into a melodramatic discussion about babies and marriage. Luckily, Amateur Night follows Guy’s adventures over the course of just one night. So, this places it in one of my favorite comedy subgenres, “one wild night” movies.
The first movie that came to mind was The Stoned Age and Dazed and Confused was right behind it. Go, The Night Before, Detroit Rock City, and, of course, Superbad and Harold and Kumar are just some of the examples. More recently, just last year, we had the pleasure of watching Anora. So, if you’re looking for similar but also better movies than Amateur Night, check them out. When it comes to the cast, Jason Biggs was great, as per usual. He simply has that face and screen presence that makes any scene feel just a tad bit funny without him doing anything. Janet Montgomery as Nikki was absolutely gorgeous.
I could watch her all day every day, especially with that black wig. Jenny Mollen who plays Jason’s pregnant wife in the movie is also his wife in real life. One of the elements that’s sort of lurking in the background of this movie is the portrayal of sex workers and their daily, I mean nightly, routine. I know it sounds a bit strange to say that they weren’t reduced to sex objects but shown as real human beings but I guess that’s the society we live in. And I feel the need to take notice of this.
Especially the fact that they’re independent contractors, practically self-employed without the nasty middle-man. It would’ve been nice though if we learned more about how they ended up in this line of work. Ultimately, there are a lot of ways this movie could’ve been better. However, that’s not the point right now, the point is that I think it’s worth watching. Wow, I didn’t think at first that I would have enough material to write a regular review about this movie but here there we go.
Directors: Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse
Writers: Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse
Cast: Jason Biggs, Janet Montgomery, Ashley Tisdale, Bria L. Murphy, Jenny Mollen, Steven Weber
Fun Facts: During the closing credits, the movie goes over the events that really happened in real life.
Rating:
IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4265508/
