Dark comedies come in many shapes and sizes nowadays, some more memorable than others. Now, one half of Bill and Ted, Alex Winter, tries his hand at the subgenre with his new film, Adulthood. Winter is no stranger to the director's chair, with a filmography that ranges from the critically acclaimed documentary Zappa to the YouTuber comedy Smosh: The Movie, but will he be able to work in this style that is notoriously hard to master?
The film follows siblings Megan and Noah, who uncover an old corpse in their parents' basement. As they attempt to deal with the problem, they end up getting involved in a wildly escalating spiral of crime and murder.
From the opening scene to the moment the credits start rolling, everything about Adulthood comes across as a mere imitation of other films within this subgenre. Though the concept is straightforward and is something that has been done a million times before, there are ways to keep the idea fresh, even if that means going for an ‘if it ain't broke, don't fix it' approach. Unfortunately, Winter and co. fall into every trope this genre has to offer without bringing anything new or inventive to the table.
The one saving grace of the film is its cast, who all seem to be trying their best with the material they've been given. Kaya Scodelario and Josh Gad share a decent enough chemistry as the main brother/sister duo; however, it is when they are left to their own devices that the cracks start to show in both their performances and characters. Scodelario plays the anxious mother role surprisingly well and delivers sarcastically dry lines with ease. Gad, on the other hand, works well when bouncing off his co-stars, but struggles to make the stereotypical stoner, unemployed loser side of his character convincing and believable.
With that being said, they are joined by the likes of Billie Lourd and Anthony Carrigan, who both play their roles to the extreme in some instances. Again, even though they are working from a not-so-great script, these two really try to make the most of their characters and genuinely feel like they're revelling in the bizarre situations that each scene presents.
Everything else this film has up its sleeve is disappointingly bland and uninspired in execution. Winter is a good director and can make something truly great if the screenplay delivers, but here he feels as if he's simply going through the motions, lacking any creativity that could come from a concept like this. Even the editing can feel lacklustre and choppy at times, almost coming across as a rough cut rather than a finished edit.
This film has interesting ideas and characters that, though not particularly original, could lead to something that is both grim and funny at the same time. However, it ends up going down every predictable and bland route it can. When there is this much promising talent in front of and behind the camera, it does make you wonder how those factors could result in such a tedious end product.
Adulthood has all the makings of a decent dark comedy, but unfortunately, a simple premise and a solid cast aren't enough to keep it afloat. It's humour, storytelling and crime antics all feel tired and repetitive after a certain point, resulting in a film that feels like a slog to get through despite its meagre 97-minute runtime.
Adulthood is released on UK digital platforms on 17 November
Podcast
