The mediocre romantic comedy “A Family Affair” is a superficial flop for so many reasons. Director Richard LaGravenese tries to create humor out of his slice-of-life Los Angeles-centric tale, but the film is long on gimmicks and short on story. Everything about this one screams half-hearted and shallow, and there isn’t one aspect of this Netflix streamer that I can feel comfortable recommending.
Superstar Chris Cole (Zac Efron) is a needy celebrity with a dedicated and hardworking assistant, Zara (Joey King). She tirelessly runs around Hollywood, catering to the whims of her movie star boss. But when Chris meets her writer mom Brooke (Nicole Kidman), sparks fly and they kick off a surprising (and steamy) romance. This hot new relationship causes some difficult complications in Zara’s life, both personally and professionally.
Screenwriter Carrie Solomon‘s narrative achieves nothing more elevated than its too-basic premise, with a dumb story and dialogue that is truly dreadful. the attempts at humor flop, and the romantic entanglements feel too dated to work. The L.A. setting provides a decent enough backdrop, but I feel like so much more could’ve been done to showcase the humor that goes hand in hand with the isolated Hollywood bubble.
The film is far longer than it needs to be, and LaGravenese runs out of material early on. He struggles to maintain momentum as the film suffers from pacing issues and superficial characters that lack even an inch of depth. The characters just aren’t interesting in the slightest, which means Chris and Brooke’s romance isn’t one that audiences will be rooting for. Why? Because nobody cares!
One of the film’s saving graces is King, whose unexpectedly strong performance carries the movie. It’s not only a shame to waste such a talented cast, but it’s mostly sad to squander such a good turn from her. It’s a surprise just how good King is here, bringing a charm that stands out among the film’s myriad shortcomings. (Towards the end of the film, there is a particularly nice scene between King and Kidman where the mother-daughter writing is authentic and well done, but it’s overshadowed by the excessive garbage and noise that comprises the rest of the project).
“A Family Affair” totally trashes its potential with lackluster character development and a narrative that feels stretched thin. There’s no depth, little substance, and no compelling reason to invest in the story.
