Snatched
Starring: Amy Schumer, Goldie Hawn, Wanda Sykes, Ike Barinholtz
Directed by: Jonathan Levine
Rated: R
As my family discussed how to celebrate Mother's Day with my mom, we talked about going to the movies. She asked what was currently in theaters. The big Mother's Day release was Snatched. She passed on the opportunity. Something about watching Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn being comedically abducted on vacation just didn't appeal to her. What about that concept made the studio believe it should be marketed for Mother's Day? What mom wants to watch a comedy about being abducted with her daughter? That's a pretty messed up concept in general. Since Mother's Day, I have seen Snatched and all I can say is steer clear of it.
If you need to know more than just "steer clear of it". I'll give you a full review. The basic premise begins as Emily (Amy Schumer) and her boyfriend are supposed to go on vacation to Ecuador together. He declines because his band is becoming popular and quickly breaks up with her. Set on going to Ecuador no matter what, Emily asks her tentative mother, Linda (Goldie Hawn), on the trip. The two set out on a mother-daughter vacation unaware that a dangerous journey awaits them.
For a little while, I thought maybe the critics got it wrong because Snatched starts out as a decent comedy. Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn have good chemistry as we get to know their characters and the film establishes their mother-daughter relationship. The two arrive at a resort in Ecuador and we watch a standard vacation comedy. It's nothing groundbreaking, but there are funny moments. After Emily meets a dreamy guy at the resort, she persuades Linda to go on a day trip outside of the resort with them. Excellent idea, right? What could possibly go wrong? At this point, the two are kidnapped and held for ransom. As the two women try to escape the outrageous scenario, the movie declines rapidly.
Snatched has so many issues, but one of its biggest is tonal shifts. One minute it's a raunchy comedy, the next it's a mother-daughter drama, then it's an action movie. Pick a lane. It sounds as if I'm being overcritical, but we've seen recent summer blockbusters like Spy juggle action and comedy quite well. We know it's possible to blend two genres cohesively. Snatched never finds its tone. In many instances, the script opts for cheap laughs instead of good comedy. One specific scene involving a tapeworm sticks out as one of the worst movie moments I've seen in years. It's definitely memorable, but in the worst possible way.
As someone who liked Trainwreck and Amy Schumer's comedy central show, her performance in Snatched is pretty disappointing. She isn’t terrible, but her character provides very few laughs. She relies so much on gross out humor and cheap gags which is such a lazy form of comedy.
This is Goldie Hawn's first movie in 15 years and it’s good to see her on screen again. I wish the script itself had been better for her, but she did a good job with her character. She brought a nice comedic energy that helped the movie a lot.
The two strongest points of the movie are Wanda Sykes and Joan Cusack as Ruth and Barb. I laughed every time they were on screen. For some reason, they don't even let Joan Cusack talk in this movie (which is a film crime), yet she still steals her scenes. I kept hoping the two would show up in more scenes to save the movie, but they were sadly under used. Such is the general feeling surrounding Snatched, a glimmer of comedic hope that quickly turns to disappointment.
My Rating: 3/10