I find the back and forth between past and present extremely unnecessary. It tries so hard to be 'mysterious' with its story telling but it ended up being excruciatingly cheesy and predictable. It's not as groundbreaking and profound as it think it did.
Although there are some funny moments, there's a significant imbalance between the poignant drama and the comedy. It fails to smoothly blend the two, and ended up being awkward and sometimes cringe.
I'm a massive fan of Sennott, and unfortunately her alone cannot carry the whole film. Ironically the only funny character, among dozens of stand up comedians.
post-traumatic stress disorder (ptsd) toronto, canada nanny comedian female protagonist woman director
Plot summary
Sam is a young stand-up comedian and au pair struggling with PTSD, who is weighing whether or not to join the search for Brooke, a missing girl she used to nanny.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
November 27, 2024 at 01:13 PM
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She Used to Be Funny you guys
get rid of the aunt
Sam Cowell (Rachel Sennott) is a stand-up comic with some success who does a bit of work as a nanny. Her 14 year old former charge Brooke Renner (Olga Petsa) is declared missing and shows up smashing her door in anger. Two years earlier, Sam gets hired by Cameron Renner (Jason Jones) to watch his 12 year old daughter while his wife is sick in the hospital.
The first half is intriguing. The mystery of the incident keeps my interest. Once it's revealed, the movie goes into Lifetime territories. The one glaring problem is the aunt's presence. Sam would notify her at every step. The fact that she exists is an exit ramp for Sam to take. That diminishes the intensity of the story. If she doesn't exist, Brooke would be running away from a foster home. The police could be less than co-operative. Then Sam would feel like she's Brooke's only hope. That would raise the intensity of the second half. As for Olga Petsa, she's a little old to play a 12 year old. Brooke's young age is very important to her feelings. Otherwise, Sennott is excellent. I can see this story working, but it needs some changes.