Review of Obvious Child (2009) by Jonathan G — 23 Jun 2014

Coming from first time writer/director Gillian Robespierre is the unique abortion/comedy combination Obvious Child. The movie stars Jenny Slate getting arguable her first starring role in anything. Slate is probably most famous for being fired for saying the F-word on Saturday Night Live, but has also done a lot of good work guest appearing on Parks and Recreation, House of Lies, and Kroll Show. Jake Lacy, who played Pete in the later years of The Office, takes on his biggest role to date as well playing the love interest. Gaby Hoffmann, David Cross, and Richard Kind round out the bigger names of the supporting cast.

Obvious Love is a controversial movie because it deals with abortion in a very pro-choice manner. While opinions on the topic can be varied and may greatly affect whether or not you see the movie, this should be known ahead of time for those sensitive to this subject. That being said, the story is based around the life of Donna (Slate), who is in her late 20's, works a job in a used book store that barely pays the bills, and is an aspiring stand-up comedian. After rebounding from a tough break-up, she meets the nice guy next door type in Max (Lacy) and has a one night stand, which ultimately leads to her having her unexpected pregnancy.

Despite her non-leading lady looks, during the opening scene in the movie she describes herself as looking like someone that you would buy a bagel from in a synagogue, Jenny Slate is terrific in this movie and this should be the role that leads to a huge boom in her career. She shows a ton of range and considering she is by far the focal point of the movie, I don't think there was a single scene she was not in, Slate had to do a lot of work from delivering stand-up comedy to having to deal with the emotional toll of having an abortion. Jake Lacy should also be recognized for the great performance he gives in the movie, he is truly does a good job of playing the guy that probably ever girl dreams of, while he is not in a lot of the movie, the performance Lacy gives is great and you can't help but root for him. While the directing was fine although it felt a little slow at points, I felt like Robespierre's script could have used just a little bit more comedy in parts. The humor was a little more on the subtle side and could have used a few more funny lines in the beginning of the movie. However, the parts where I did laugh, I laughed hard including a hilarious joke from her gay friend Joey about getting someone pregnant.

If the topic of abortion doesn't offend you, I really recommend checking out this movie. Obvious Child has a great spirit and sense of humor while also being extremely heartfelt and doesn't make light of the situation.

Rating: 4 out of 5.