Trainwreck

Judd Apatow’s fifth film, Trainwreck follows promiscuous magazine writer Amy Townsend (Amy Schumer) as she’s forced to reevaluate her choices after falling for a stable, steady doctor named Aaron (Bill Hader). It’s immediately clear that screenwriter Schumer is looking to skewer the various tropes and cliches associated with the romantic comedy genre, and while the comedian-turned-actress generally does a nice job of highlighting some of the more overtly absurd romcom-specific elements, Trainwreck does, as a result, feature a first half that occasionally feels more like a series of sketches than an actual movie (eg Amy and a friend are frightened and confused when Hader’s character wants a second date). Schumer’s effective yet unmemorable turn as the central character ultimately perpetuates the movie’s less-than-stellar atmosphere, and there’s little doubt that Trainwreck benefits substantially from the efforts of its exceedingly talented supporting cast. (Hader’s remarkably assured and charismatic leading-man performance is an ongoing highlight, to be certain, and it’s worth noting, too, that periphery players such as Brie Larson, Mike Birbiglia, and LeBron James (!) offer up better-than-average work.) Having said that, Trainwreck improves quite a bit as it progresses into its second half and morphs into a more traditional romance – with the palpable chemistry between Schumer and Hader’s respective characters going a long way towards perpetuating this vibe. It’s distressing (yet not surprising) to discover, however, that the movie suffers from a seriously overlong running time, with Apatow’s stubborn refusal to trim the movie down resulting in a protracted third act that’s rife with overlong and flat-out needless sequences (eg a thoroughly pointless intervention sequence) – which finally does ensure that Trainwreck falls right in line with the filmmaker’s previous three efforts.

**1/2 out of ****