A Happening of Monumental Proportions (2017)

Also known as A Very Bad Day.

Landed in my atmosphere without so much as a ripple when it was released, I came across this by accident and then, sadly, I found out the reason for the lack of bluster and pomp at the time.

Some intriguing cameos make this Judy Greer project more interesting than the plot and performances would normally allow. There is an intangible cluttery-ness about the whole thing, expressed mostly in undertone and awkward delivery that never seems to convince.

This is a shame because I love Judy Greer almost as much as I love Alison Janney, so this would have got something of a pass for me from the get-go, but even with the best will in the world rooting for it, this still fails to hit its mark most of the time. It has the same dark tone, somewhat predictably, as Weekend At Bernie's, but lacks most if not all of the humour that came with it.

Farce in the light of death can be hard to pull off, which is a large reason why there isn't more of it, I suppose. When Bradley Whitford's character cleans his glasses, he heaves a sigh and utters a somewhat prosaic sentence;

"That isn't interesting. Not interesting at all."

And I fully understood his pain at that moment. This lurches in an ungainly fashion to a conclusion that really wasn't worth the effort to reach it. Characters are not rounded, so far as to be inconsequential at times and bar one or two exceptions, are not worth the time afforded to them at all. Sorry Judy, but really, better luck next time.