“That Awkward Moment” opens today with mega male star power. Zac Efron, the heartthrob with the intense blue eyes, Miles Teller from the powerful upcoming film “Whiplash,” and Michael B. Jordon from “Fruitvale” all band together to draw every type of female into the theaters. The geared for under 30 age group movie delivers exactly what it promises---a guy’s perspective on dating and relationships. In fact, if you’ve seen the trailers, you’ve heard the jokes and have already seen many of the “awkward moments.”
“That Awkward Moment” is about three guys, two who are single and work together, and the third who is married. When Mikey (Jordan) finds himself with divorce papers, the three make a pact to stay single. But life happens and they each find that staying out of a relationship isn’t always a conscious choice. Ultimately, their friendship is at the heart of this movie and the importance of having friends. Needing and wanting more than that, these three are secretly embarrassed to admit it.
These three young men seem to live the life of “Friends.” They live in NYC and Daniel (Teller) and Jason (Efron) work together at their cool job of designing book covers; winging it and impressing their clients. Of course, along with these hip jobs, they experience a consistent eventful night life. On the contrary, Dr. Mikey has done things in perfect order, “checked all the boxes,” as he said. Unfortunately, his beautiful wife has other ideas. Now all single, the guys hang out, discuss life and love, and how to build a perfect “roster.” You know, girls to choose from on any given night. Jason (Efron) imparts his wisdom about love and life and “The So.” When you hear “so...” from a girl, you know it’s over. Jason’s viewpoint is quite skewed, but also witty. Their take on life and their conversation feels like they were just three guys hanging out. Yes, the film is also a bit raunchy with quite a bit of gratuitous sex as well. I hope guys don’t think that way as they portray themselves in the dimmest of light.
Efron, Teller, and Jordan easily fit together as best buddies. Yes, the story has been told before. This is just a little different take on that familiar story of trying to grow up. “That Awkward Moment” attempts to take a comedy and place some drama into it, but fails. It tries too hard to show you it’s teaching you a lesson in love. The insults and situations they find themselves in, although somewhat predictable, are quite funny. But the comedy finds itself lagging about half way through the film where it drags and becomes rather tiresome. The Gramercy Park scene is reminiscent of a “Ferris Bueller” moment solidifying the lack of creativity on this film’s part.
Shot in NYC, it’s beautiful. It captures the essence of the neighborhoods and the vitality of the Big Apple. But even NY can’t work its magic on this film.
“That Awkward Moment” is a predictable movie told from a male’s perspective. It does have its humorous moments through the awkwardness, but just can’t deliver throughout the entire film. The loose ends take too long to wrap up and the film tries to be more than it can be.
If you’re under thirty, my guess is you’ll like this film. The film will appeal to both guys and gals, but don’t get your expectations up too high. If you go, stick around for the outtakes after the credits. This was the funniest part of the movie! So...
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