No Hard Feelings Movie Review

Okay. This movie won’t be for everyone. There. I got that out of the way. If you’re a Jennifer Lawrence fan, it’s definitely for you. ​

It’s directed and co-written by Gene Stupnitsky (born in 1977 in Kyiv, Ukraine), who wrote “Bad Teacher,” “Good Boys,” and fifteen episodes of “The Office.” He has what it takes to make you laugh with much of what he has done and with “No Hard Feelings,” he accomplishes that goal again. John Phillips wrote “Dirty Grandpa.” Gene Stupnitsky and John Phillips are the perfect team to come up with something crazy, dirty and ridiculously fun. They managed to get some touching, inspirational moments into this script, as well.

Based on what you may have seen in trailers or read online, I think you should see the movie and decide whether you can handle seeing a somewhat “Blue” rom-com and have some fun while you do. I don’t think you’ll regret it if you commit yourself to simply valuing and engaging in some silly R-rated rendition of mischief. You’re an adult. As Jennifer Lawrence does here, let your hair down.

In this story, Maddie Barker (Lawrence) works several jobs, one as an Uber driver, trying to make enough money to pay the property taxes on her mother’s house that she inherited. She’s willing to do almost anything to ensure she doesn’t lose her home. After non-payment, Maddie loses her car. Scanning Craigslist, she sees an advertisement that doesn’t take her long to consider doing. Without a car, she can’t make money and will lose everything.

The listing is by the parents of Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman). They, Laird (Broderick) and Allison (Laura Benanti) Becker aren’t hurting for cash and hope they can find a young woman who’s desperate enough to be part of a scam they’ve thought up to help their son grow up, which does include some hanky-panky. The listing says whoever she is would be given a car.

The Craigslist ad she reads is based on a real one! This news was revealed by the director during a film festival this year. He told the audience that the producers Marc Provissiero and Naomi Odenkirk read an advert that had desperate parents of a teenage boy who had done nothing with his life except what he could do in his room. His only friends were those he met playing games on his computer. They wanted him to have some encounters and action before sending him off to be alone in school. They didn’t want him to fail college but, most especially, in life.

Once they told Stupnitsky about this post, the script basically wrote itself. With Jennifer Lawrence as your leading lady, there’s no way you can’t have a hit on your hands. This movie was perfect for her. She’s acting entirely irrational one moment, inept and foolish the next, and profoundly loving a few minutes later. I can’t imagine the character in any other person’s hands. There are a few scenes that Percy manages to steal from Maddie. There are some great one-liners from both.

What is incredibly generous as she tries to get this boy to let his guard down and have sex with her is you see a friendship build on his side. Maddie begins to like Percy, too, but she has a job to do and his lack of interest in her is driving her mental.

But at some point, his purity may be more of a priority. You see in Maddie’s face that she knows her actions are ultimately selfish and unkind. She doesn’t need his fellow students, who think she’s someone’s mother, to tell her that.

“No Hard Feelings” has a great cast, but it’s Jennifer Lawrence who will blow you away. I could say go see it for the comedy, but I suggest you see it for her. She’s not shy, her character is strong and so is Maddie’s. Jennifer is comical, soft, hard and totally lets her guard down. She’s willing to do what it takes to show the audience who Maddie is, and she does it fearlessly without caring what those who’d thumb their nose at her think.