Review of The Little Hours (2017) by Chris O — 22 Apr 2018

A real weird comedy. That's all.

Medieval nuns Alessandra (Alison Brie), Fernanda (Aubrey Plaza), and Ginevra (Kate Micucci) lead a simple life in their convent. Their days are spent chafing at monastic routine, spying on one another, and berating the estate's day laborer. After a particularly vicious insult session drives the peasant away, Father Tommasso (John C. Reilly) brings on new hired hand Massetto (Dave Franco), a virile young servant forced into hiding by his angry lord. Introduced to the sisters as a deaf-mute to discourage temptation, Massetto struggles to maintain his cover as the repressed nunnery erupts in a whirlwind of pansexual horniness, substance abuse, and wicked revelry.

"It's trash. Pure trash". That was the best quote to ever describe a film in a trailer and based on that alone, I was dying to watch this film. However, based on what I had heard, I didn't have much in going out of my way to find this film. But as of today (4/24), it's on Amazon Prime! So one day, I decided to give it a try to see just how funny this film was.

To keep this short and sweet, "The Little Hours" was a solid comedy. It wasn't the funniest thing I had seen and after the first 5 minutes, I was unsure how much I'd like it. But as the film progressed, it seemed as though everyone got more comfortable and it started to flow a bit more. From there, it actually got pretty funny and there were plenty of laughs to be had. The improvisation in this film was solid and I certainly had a few laughs throughout.

The actors in this film are really what brings out the comedy and story. Everyone down the line had a huge part to play, whether their actual role in the film was big or small. I really appreciate everyone's performances. Allison Brie and Dave Franco were hilarious co-leads, while Aubrey Plaza and John C. Reilly brought up the rear and gave us even more laughs. From there, everyone else still did a great job. I think there was a fun cast here and if you like anyone's past work here, you'll like them here.

I really don't have much to say. The story was fine, there were some laughs. I don't think there's a lot to be said about this film. There are some interesting, underlying themes but it was nothing too deep. I think if you go into this looking for some laughs, you'll certainly find it. Cheers.