Recommendation: 3/5 Stars, STREAM

Plot: “Journalist Fred Flarsky reunites with his childhood crush, Charlotte Field, now one of the most influential women in the world. As she prepares to make a run for the Presidency, Charlotte hires Fred as her speechwriter and sparks fly.” -IMDB

Review: On its surface, this movie shouldn’t work. Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron are from different worlds. The respective characters they are playing (Fred Flarsky and Charlotte Field) couldn’t be any more different. Yet, weirdly, the whole thing gels in an unexpected way and it all begins with an opportunity.

Fred Flarsky isn’t having a great day. After taking a stand for journalism, he loses his job. To celebrate his newfound freedom, his friend invites him to a party where he comes face to face with his childhood crush and now one of the most powerful women in the world, Secretary of State, Charlotte Field. This reunion returns us to their last awkward childhood encounter when Charlotte was Fred’s babysitter. Flashforward to present day and we discover that Charlotte is considering a run for President of the United States, but lacks the messaging required to appeal to a broad audience. Enter, the newly unemployed writer Fred Flarsky!

Fred’s first test comes in the form of a trip abroad where Charlotte is set to unveil a three-pronged approach to combating some of the planet’s greatest challenges. Almost instantly, we can see there is chemistry between Rogen and Theron. With each new stop, they grow closer and more attached. Being from two different worlds doesn’t matter when they are forced into a hiding spot thanks to a suspected terrorist attack. In the heat of the moment, the first kiss happens, and a hidden romance begins.

It is at this point in the movie that this evenly paced comedy slips into the ridiculous. Despite itself, this becomes a tale of whether it is possible to choose chemistry over your job when the truth is staring you in the face. This film awkwardly answers that question and never fully sticks the landing. With that in mind, I still think this is a film worth your time.

Be good to each other,

-Nathan

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