The Lovebirds – Movie Reviews by Ry!

The Lovebirds – A Comedy of Murder and Mishaps … Guilty of Love?

Film entertainment is a fickle thing.  From a romantic journey to the fight against all odds, the emotional fervor that roars in will produce a unique escape for the audience.  If you can feel, then you’re in for the long haul.  Out of all the genre’s, comedy is probably the most subjective.  Everyone laughs at different things, but it can become an unforgettable classic.  In this latest review, I look at the latest comedy to hit Netflix, The Lovebirds.  Through a mixture of character and murder/mystery elements, this film fills with highs and lows of that genuine laughter.  Even with a mixed bag of plot and direction, The Lovebirds show that laughter can be found, even in the familiar.

The story follows Leilani (Issa Rae) and Jibran (Kumail Nanjiani), a couple that get caught up in a murder mystery at the most in opportune time.  With everything on the line, will these two find a way to survive the night?  In the beginning, the film moves quickly through generalization of character setup, key incident and plot.  You are introduced to Leilani and Jibran, as they meet and fall in love.  This basic setup is an epilogue (of sorts), as the story picks up four years later when the couple has hit a rough patch.  Through convenient plot devices, there quarreling leads them to become accessories to murder.  This is the key incident, leading into the bulk of the journey.  At this point, Leilani and Jibran go along a typical ‘point A to B’ path, looking for clues to figure out the murderer’s identity and prove their innocence.  All the general tropes used are relate to a murder/mystery scenario.  This leads to heavy foreshadowing that creates lackluster feeling when evidence is revealed, or mishaps are supposed to be unpredictable.  Even as the basics create a predictable outcome, what will draw in the audience is the main characters.   

The main characters shine above because of a two-fold approach.  The first is their unique comedic flavor to the roles.  Their bravado creates a dynamic that feels lively, real and authentic.  When you see them bantering between each other (or other characters), you feel true comedic elements that is built off the situation.  The second is the use of the ‘one-night event’ technique.  This is used to encapsulate scenes together through the mishaps of the main characters.  By leaving no room for ambiguity beyond a certain area, it allows for creativity to happen in unexpected times (especially in moments of the lover’s quarrels).  As the story heads into the final act, everything comes to head where Leilani and Jibran come to face the truth.  This leads into a full circle climax that brings true resolution to their journey.  The Lovebirds uses a lot of familiar elements in the plot, but it is the character’s that will have you reeling till the end.  Even if things are predictable, The leads help keep everything funny.  For anyone familiar with their comedy or like these kinds of films, this is one for you.  This is available on Netflix, but I wouldn’t mind seeing this on the big screen, at a discount.  

Full Score – 3 out of 5 (Theater Discount)

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