Snatched review: Goldie Hawn returns to the screen after more than a decade with this Amy Schumer-led comedy vehicle from the director of 50/50.
Snatched review by Andrew Gaudion, May 2017.
Snatched review
Summer time brings with it a varied selection of blockbusters for cinemagoers to digest; for every big action spectacle, there’s a studio comedy like Snatched. They can often be a welcome change of pace to the visual effects driven spectacles that do often dominate the season. Snatched, unfortunately doesn’t quite convince when it comes to establishing itself as a comedy to remember, proving to a be a little lazy despite the odd moment of hilarity.
Amy Schumer plays Emily, a directionless 30-something who has just been dumped by her long gone boyfriend. Having booked a non-refundable trip for two to Ecuador, Emily decides to take her Mother, Linda (Goldie Hawn) along for the ride. However, once in Ecuador, the two end up being kidnapped, and have to rely on their own wits to save themselves.
Snatched review
The central concept is one that you probably wouldn’t be surprised to see in a Goldie Hawn movie of the 80’s/90’s, so it is easy to see the appeal of having someone like Hawn revisit the high concept comedies that made her name while shaking up the formula a bit with Schumer’s trademark irreverence serving as the comedic flavour.
Read More: Watch the Snatched trailer
Hawn and Schumer’s themselves have an easy going chemistry and there are a few laughs, particularly within the first half which has some nicely observed beats focusing on the mother and daughter dynamic (nearly everyone will be able to relate to a certain Facebook gag). It is when the pair take off to Ecuador that the flint rather embarrassingly falters. Far too many laughs are attempted through uninspired and rather lazy gross-out means. It ends up making the film feel like that one thing a feature length comedy should do better to avoid: it feels sketchy as hell.
Snatched review
Director Jonathan Levine has proven to be a very capable director in the past, particularly with more low-key dramedies with the likes of the touching 50/50 and the The Whackness. The Night Before showed he could do broader comedy quite comfortably, but here he seems very disengaged with the material. There are some very poor effect shots, and the general anonymous, workmanlike feel only adds to the disappointment of seeing such a film coming from a director who has proven his talent on many occasions.
Despite its scattershot nature, there are moments in Snatched that will leave you howling, particularly if you go in with the right mindset. This is very much the breed of comedy that doesn’t require too much attention, and at a breezy 90 minutes it does feel like it flies by. How many laughs you get out this will largely depend on how you feel towards Amy Schumer’s brand of comedy, but there is no denying that it is rather nice to see Goldie Hawn back in movies, even if this one doesn’t hold a torch to the likes of Overboard or Bird on a Wire. I also can’t imagine the South American tourist board has too many kind words to say about it.
Snatched review by Andrew Gaudion.
Snatched is released in UK cinemas on Friday 19th May, 2017.
