“This is simply one of the funniest films produced in years. “
Con Nats
4 Coffee tables
Splitsville
Splitsville opened the Cannes Film Festival and closed the Sydney Film Festival, which is amazing for a black comedy that starts with a blow job, that leads to a car tragedy and turns the rom-com genre inside out.
Carey (Kyle Marvin) and wife Ashley (Adrai Arjona) are heading for a weekend at a beach house with best friends Paul (Michael Angelo Covino) and Julie (Dakota Johnson). Following the accident, Ashley asks for a divorce. Cary responds by running and running, all the way to the beach house. He stays and learns the secret to his friends’ happiness is an open marriage. And when Ross is away on ‘business’ Cary and Julie play.
Paul isn’t pleased and this leads to one of the funniest fight scenes ever seen. It goes for real moves and action that makes you feel every hit. It’s simply hilarious.
Cary moves back home and suggests to Ashley they have an open relationship and stay married. This leads to the next Act being about Cary living in a house overrun by Ashley’s lovers, who he befriends and has over for dinner. And we’re only halfway through the plot.
It’s only towards the end this falls into rom-com territory but even these scenes are interrupted by d-jokes and Matt, the meek mentalist (Nichlas Braun).
The script written by the two male leads is brilliant. Not a comic moment is wasted or opportunity missed for a laugh. (Try listening to the background ground chat. There are gags in every conversation.) They have taken the rom-com genre and totally twisted it into a modern immorality play. And director Michael Angelo Covino (who plays Paul) does a great job capturing the comic moments. (Interestingly, they both worked on another film, The Climb, with a very similar theme.) The acting is convincing and Dakota Johnson is showing she is great at comedy, after proving it in the 50 Shades franchise. Kyle Marvin is a standout as well.
This is simply one of the funniest films produced in years. Don’t worry about the male based humour; there are plenty of laughs for everyone. Go and enjoy it.
4 Coffee Tables
Con Nats, On The Screen
