Review Roundup: Critics Weigh In On I FEEL PRETTY Starring Amy Schumer

By: Apr. 19, 2018
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Review Roundup: Critics Weigh In On I FEEL PRETTY Starring Amy Schumer

The new Amy Schumer-led comedy I FEEL PRETTY rolls into movie theaters tomorrow! The film centers around Amy's character who falls victim to a head injury, and in turn gains a new sense of security with unending confidence. The movie also stars Michelle Williams, Aidy Bryant, Emily Ratajkowski, Rory Scovel, Busy Philipps, and Tom Hopper.

See what the critics are saying here:

Peter Debruge, Variety: "In what could be read as a direct rebuke to movies like "Shallow Hal" (1999's poor-taste Farrelly brothers comedy, in which Gwyneth Paltrow embodied a morbidly obese woman's "inner beauty"), "I Feel Pretty" makes it a point never to reveal how Renee perceives her rose-tinted reflection in the mirror. Meanwhile, audiences are invited to share the other characters' bewilderment as this once-awkward wallflower starts acting like a world-class diva, mistaking construction-worker whistles and innocuous banter with complete strangers (like Rory Scovel, who plays the cute, doesn't-know-what-hit-him guy she picks up at the dry cleaner) as evidence of her hotness."

Benjamin Lee, The Guardian: "Written and directed by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein, a pairing who also scripted 2016's smart, fresh and quietly progressive comedy How to Be Single, the film offers the potential for a similar balance of humor and life lessons. But while their previous attempt managed this with ease and a light touch, there's a frustrating absence of both here, the end result feeling more like an awkwardly assembled attempt to recall high-concept hits from the 80s. There's a bit of Working Girl as Renee tries to climb the CORPORATE ladder of a cosmetics company using her experience outside of the beautiful bubble. There are elements of body swap farces like Vice Versa and Like Father Like Son as she gets used to her new look. And, as the film references, there's a heavy debt owed to Big. Yet Kohn and Silverstein can't quite figure out if it's a parody of such fare or an earnest examination of the shallow nature of society."

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: "The movie keeps jerking our chain, encouraging us first to chuckle snidely and then feel bad about it. It's wearying. There is compensation in a few sensational supporting performances: Michelle Williams is hilarious as Avery LeClair, the cosmetics CEO and granddaughter of the firm's founder Lily (Lauren Hutton). Williams uses a high-pitched voice that wreaks havoc with her businesswoman's already shaky dignity; the tension between how LeClair appears and how she sounds is palpable. Model Emily Ratajkowski also scores as a gym buddy with character weaknesses her looks can't cure. Schumer is especially funny and touching in her scenes with the excellent Rory Scovel as Ethan, the shy guy she picks up who's more in touch with his feminine side than everyone else in the macho jungle where he operates."

Tim Grierson, Screen Daily: "In her stand-up comedy and her Emmy-winning sketch series Inside Amy Schumer, Schumer has often self-deprecatingly taken aim at her insecurities about her figure, mocking how society forces women to hate themselves because they're not sufficiently thin or gorgeous. She taps directly into Renee's poor self-image, and makes the character's sense of defectiveness humorous but also poignant. Renee is surrounded by women who have perfect complexions, smiles and bodies, and in Schumer's sad, resigned expression we see how the character has internalised these corrosive feelings of worthlessness for years."

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: "Body issues and self-esteem are at the movie's heart; Schumer's character, Renee Bennett, has a lot of the former and none of the latter. A Manhattanite (who lives alone in a fantasy Hollywood movie apartment, but never mind), she works for the huge LeClaire cosmetics corporation, but at the online offices in a Chinatown basement rather than the company's chic uptown headquarters. (Just to add to the addled geography, the movie was filmed in Boston with what looks like a day's worth of pickup shots around New York's Bryant Park.)"

Katie Walsh, The Sentinel: "In addition to the inherent premise issues, "I Feel Pretty" falters from some serious structural instability, too. Renee is required to undergo a few drastic personality changes along the way, but in an undercooked subplot with her friends, played by Busy Philipps and Aidy Bryant, it's as if she has multiple personality disorder. Serious story connective tissue is also missing from her rock bottom moment, downward spiraling after realizing she's back to her normal self, only to bounce back after hearing that a gorgeous fellow SoulCycler (Emily Ratajkowski) was dumped once. Her rapid turnaround is enough to incur some serious whiplash."



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