Review of Cake (2014) by Kyle B — 25 Jan 2015

If I were only scoring Jennifer Aniston's performance, this would be a five out of five. Unfortunately, her performance is part of a movie, and that movie as a whole isn't great.

Aniston embodies the torment of living with chronic pain to such a point that it becomes hard to watch at times. It is quite a turn for the actress who will forever be seen as Rachel Green. The supporting cast, including Sam Worthington, Adriana Barraza, and Anna Kendrick, stays with Aniston beat for beat, and reaches her level of relatability.

Unfortunately, the script lets the cast down, not so much with the dialogue, but with the overall story. The pacing is off, and causes the film to drag through much of the first two acts. It takes until the third act before the script gives the actors a chance to do something with the intriguing characters they have created.

Cake pulls outstanding performances out of its cast, but does not give them the story those characters so richly deserve.