Trainwreck (2015)

Trainwreck is a gender reversed rom-com.

This movie tells the tale of Amy Townsend (Amy Schumer), a thirty something journalist. This is until she meets Aaron Connors (Bill Hader). The film follows their time as a couple.

Amy is an interesting character as she embodies the man in the relationship. The aspects of her personality are enforced by the people that surround her. There is her sister Kim (Brie Larson), her best friend Nikki (Vanessa Bayer) and her father Gordon (Colin Quinn). On the other hand, Dr. Aaron Conners, who represents the female in the relationship is supported by LeBron James (himself).

Regarding characterisation, only Amy, Aaron and LeBron were presented as fully fledged characters. The remainder of the characters are one dimensional, which is disappointing considering how well developed the two leads, and LeBron.

There are many notable celebrity cameos and short parts, most of which did not adda anything to the movie. The most notable is John Cena as Steven, who plays a person that Amy dates. Unfortunately, this dilutes from time that could be spent on developing side characters.

There are a lot of laughs in this movie, most of which are deserved. These laughs come from the majority of the cast and their interactions with both Amy and Aaron.

The strength of this film is that character interactions seem natural, with all actors fully embracing their roles. The strongest interaction by far was between our lead couple, with their obvious chemistry being the highlight of the film.

While this movie runs on rom-com tropes, they feel refreshing due to the gender reversal that this film adopts. It adds another level of understanding with both leads feeling fully developed as opposed to solely one of them.

To further this point, it feels like there is a coming of age story hidden within the movie. This is a nice touch as both character go through their coming of age stories later on in life. It is a great way of showing that people grow up at different times in their life.

For me, the major negative was the ending sequence. For a movie that focused on small moments and character interaction, the ending sequence was too big. It felt completely unnatural, and only there to tick a box. It drops the films potential to be considered a great.

Trainwreck is a rom-com that had the potential to be great, if not for the final sequence.

Number of times I looked at my watch: Three

Recommendation: This film is an enjoyable watch, on Netflix. Unless it is rereleased on Valentines Day.

I hope you enjoyed this review, please let me know what other movies you would like me to review.

Have a great day. Looking forward to your feedback.