I Feel Pretty - movie review

I Feel Pretty

Plot: A woman struggling with insecurity wakes from a fall believing she is the most beautiful and capable woman on the planet. Her new confidence empowers her to live fearlessly, but what happens when she realizes her appearance never changed?
Cast: Amy Schumer, Michelle Williams, Rory Scovel
Directors: Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein
Certificate: 12A (moderate sex, sex references, language)
Runtime: 1hr 50 mins
Release Date: Friday 4th May 2018

Ever since she teamed with Judd Apatow for Trainwreck, Amy Schumer has been on the up and up. Her stand-up comedy is selling out arenas across America and she certainly put her stamp on Hollywood. I Feel Pretty marks Schumer's next endeavour as she stars as a woman struggling with body confidence. After taking a tumble at a spin class, Schumer now sees herself as the most beautiful human being to walk the planet whilst in actual fact, nothing has changed. Trainwreck was a fun movie but her next feature, Snatched, was less impressive. I Feel Pretty lands smack-dab in between the two in terms of quality.

The child suffered from an irrational fear of peek-a-boo.

Going into I Feel Pretty, I was expecting the worst. The trailers looked incredibly dull and unfunny so I had planned to walk out of the film ready to write a scathing review. Fortunately, I Feel Pretty isn't all that bad. It's by no means a good film but it does have some admirable intentions even if the end result is a mediocre and misguided mess. Whilst some people find her annoying and even a select few find her infuriating, I've never disliked Schumer. Some of her jokes can be a little worn out but she's got an endless amount of energy to her that makes Schumer a compelling enough screen presence. In the film, she plays an everyday middle-class woman stuck in a dead end job that frequently hangs with her friends and gets drunk. She is quite insecure about her body image and lack of confidence as is displayed in the awkward opening montage. However, and this is why I think I Feel Pretty struggles with its message, Amy Schumer is not a bad-looking woman. The attempt at promoting body image and being proud of the skin you're in is commendable and the intention is earnest but by making the claim that for a woman like Schumer to be unhappy with her looks and make jokes at the expense of that (a crazy bikini contest involving water being a prime example), goes against its fundamental message. Schumer is a very normal looking woman and whilst the story drives home the fact that she should be happy, jokes about her weight contrast heavily. That being said, Schumer tones down her foul-mouthed shtick and creates an endearing character that could be considered the American Bridget Jones. Her relationship that develops with possible love interest, Rory Scovel (who gives a very understated comedic performance) was sweet enough to distract from the confusing fashion subplot. Their romance may tread down some incredibly familiar paths but the chemistry between the two helps it pass by with minimal scars. Schumer's group of friends are also engaging enough to help the time pass by but their story is far more predictable.

I'm sure Bradley Wiggins had this problem all the time.

FACT: Originally, the film was to have an R rating.

Notice how, up until now, I haven't mentioned the comedic aspect of I Feel Pretty. It was probably halfway into the film where I noticed that I hadn't laughed all that much. It wasn't that the jokes hadn't landed but it was actually that the jokes weren't there at all. A hefty portion of I Feel Pretty is dedicated to Schumer waltzing around like she's a supermodel whilst others watch on in confusion and the joke wears incredibly thin quickly. There is also a ridiculous subplot regarding Schumer's job at a high-end fashion company that are looking to release a "Diffusion" line. Aside from Michelle Williams putting on a ridiculously squeaky voice and clearly having fun with the role, this story loses traction almost as soon as it starts. There is a clear commentary on fashion companies using stick thin models and promoting a certain kind of body image but the result is a muddled and generic story bursting with clichés. It's almost as if Big meets The Devil Wears Prada. This leads into an extreme lack of focus within the film as to what it's trying to achieve. Is it promoting the female body image? Is it giving a commentary on fashion companies excluding the middle class? Or is it finding confidence within your inner self and not being pressured by what others say? There is a way all three could be equally balanced but the film tries to juggle them with both hands tied behind their back meaning that no story is ever given the spotlight. The film is also inexplicably long. Seemingly taking a page out of Apatow's book, I Feel Pretty runs for almost two hours but soon struggles to find enough worthwhile material to suit the runtime. Sequences and side-stories are drawn out for far longer that they have any right to be resulting in a 100 minute runtime feeling more like a two and a half hour trek.

When you read Kanye's tweets...

For what could have been a total disaster, I Feel Pretty turned out better than expected but still not something I'd recommend. I may not be the intended demographic for this film but the message is very cloudy despite the good intentions and even though the cast are committed, there isn't enough laughs to make this memorable.

My Verdict: 5/10

What did you think of I Feel Pretty? What is your least favourite Amy Schumer comedy? Sound off in the comments below.

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