By Armstrong Simms | Contributor
Here it is ladies and gentlemen, another Netflix Original film. From the people that brought a few good things and a whole bunch of stuff that you scroll past 20 times—a film actually worth watching.
In “Murder Mystery,” Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston star as husband and wife who decide, after 15 years of marriage, to finally go on their long overdue honeymoon to Europe. While on the plane, Aniston meets a charming rich British guy who invites Sandler and Aniston (the Spitz’s) to a party on a yacht.
They accept, which would normally be completely unbelievable, but nothing is believable in this film. It’s a comedy! Anybody who expects continuity of plot or believability in a comedy has never seen a good comedy before.
The film got off to a slow start. A lot of things happened, character introductions, etc. The main plot doesn’t really start until about 25 minutes into the movie, which, for a one-and-a-half-hour movie, is a long time. It’s funny, but forgettable. It grabs you, but it’s not important.
This movie is exactly what you would want from an Adam Sandler movie. It’s funny and interesting. A plot that you are (somewhat) invested in, blanketed with jokes. There were awkward times when I wasn’t exactly sure whether I was supposed to laugh or feel emotional.
But here’s one thing that sets it apart from most Netflix Originals: it keeps you watching. The vast majority of Netflix films are an absolute pile of nothing that you exit to find something else after 10 minutes.
I just recently watched the Netflix Original “Secret Obsession” with the intention of writing a review on it, but after two hours of watching it, I realized that I had just completely wasted my time. If I don’t like a film, I usually write a negative review. But Secret Obsession was so absolutely void of anything at all that I had nothing to write about.
Murder Mystery had me locked in. I was interested. It was funny. I enjoyed the characters. It moved me. It never got stale.
So, here’s the big question: should you watch this movie? Well, if you’re a fan of dumb comedies, you’ll like this. The banter between Aniston and Sandler is worth it. I can even see it appealing to people who like murder mysteries, although it’s in a completely different style.
The film looks good and feels good. It’s not going to make my re-watch list, but it wasn’t absolute garbage like the critics said it was. Critics have no idea what they’re talking about, though.
My rating: 6/10
