Laps (II) (2020) User Reviews

Two People meet on a high school track field, and begin to develop a relationship together.

[BenSchyan · 8/10 · 25 September 2016]

I just watched Laps, and I was very impressed with the acting of my good friend Art Hall.

I know my friend has good chops, but this was the best display of his acting that I have ever seen. He and Rachae Thomas definitely carried this film from beginning to end. And all the supporting actors did their part as well!

It's interesting to see the adaptation of what was formally a web series be composted together as a feature film, and done well with good editing and musical score to boot.

It's a good character driven journey, and Hall and Thomas's characters are well developed to carry the tale from beginning to end. And seeing Art go through such an extreme transformation is a feat in and of itself.

I'd say check this flick out. You'll enjoy the ride! And afterwards...go out and run some LAPS!

Fun Flick

[rollinst-37059 · 7/10 · 30 October 2016]

Laps uses the backdrop of a high school track to display a romance that includes transformations, setbacks, and a lot of heart. Rachae Thomas shines as the female lead, keeping the audience engaged and rooting for her throughout the story. Art Hall provides moments of hilarity whilst on his pursuit to get his life together and win the heart of a woman. The frequent use of the track set location made the film feel slow at times. The scenes where the protagonists ventured outside of the main location were particularly noteworthy. The near 2 hour running time seemed needlessly long. This story could have been told in 80-90 min. Overall, this was an enjoyable film with several funny and tender moments.

Great performances but flat story telling

[justonethingpodcast · 5/10 · 12 October 2016]

It took me fifteen minutes into watching 'Laps' before I decided that this movie would work better as a mini series instead of a nearly two hour long movie. When this thought first occurred to me it was before I had discovered that 'Laps' had actually been created as a web series.

The first fifteen minutes constituted the first season of the series and I felt some small sense of closure after it had passed. When I checked to see how much longer the movie was I was surprised; I still had an hour and a half to go. What else was this movie going to tell me?

The lead character, Nathan Lane, starts out as a slightly overweight Archie Bunker wannabe who is trying to get his life in order. At the track that he runs laps at he comes across Stephanie Gonzales, an attractive single mother.

Eventually Nathan loses the weight and garners a new outlook on life thanks in large part to his interactions and attraction to Stephanie. She begins to reciprocate his feelings.

Nathan is a divorced father. We learn that he had cheated on his ex wife and now he lives with regret for this.

At first I thought this was a story about redemption. He was going to meet Stephanie and learn to find happiness within himself again. I thought that Stephanie was going to be the woman that would make Nathan begin to walk the proverbial straight and narrow.

It turns out that I was wrong. After another hour of meandering through mundane plot points, bizarre and random slapstick humor, and the introduction of cliché characters who serve as merely filler for exposition, Nathan ends up cheating on Stephanie with his ex wife. He essentially learns nothing and doesn't grow. He even lies to Stephanie about the affair.

While I was happy to see that Stephanie ended up with a man of seeming decent rapport, I was disappointed that I even mildly invested in Nathan and her as a couple to begin with.

'500 Days of Summer' this is not. Nor should this film have tried to be.

Nathan's character had already been a cheater. Why did we, as the audience, need to witness him cheating on a woman again? It told us nothing new. The character was the same at the beginning as he was at the end, minus several pounds.

I imagine that the director would argue that this was all intentional to show how in real life things don't always work out. But when we invest time into movies we don't want to see things end on such a downer.

Even that far branching genre of mumblecore has the charm of resolution.

In Woody Allen's seminal film, 'Annie Hall' the lead character, Alvy, learns about love and relationships in spite of not ending up with Annie. In 'Laps' Nathan learns nothing. He's just a victim of his own bad decisions from beginning to end.

In '500 Days of Summer' the lead learns that he shouldn't have placed his own expectations for love on someone else. He learns something and therefore the audience learns something as well.

In 'Laps' the audience learns nothing. Except, maybe, to just not be Nathan.

Constructively, this narrative would have worked so much better as a web series. I can see the ups and downs working episode to episode and actually making sense. I can see how some episodes would have had a more comedic tone to them than others. I can also see a web series version giving more opportunity for the side characters to shine and perhaps iron out some of their clichés.

The crowning achievement of this film was Art Hall's performance. All would be lost if it weren't for his presence. It's really, actually good. There was never a point when I was watching that I didn't believe what Nathan's intention was in the scene. Whatever strange direction Hall was given in the comedic scenes, he pulled it off flawlessly. He worked with the material given him and gave a wonderful performance. Not to mention his amazing physical transformation in the film; perhaps the most interesting point.

All that to say, the story of Nathan and Stephanie can still be salvaged I feel. I am sure that a decent short film can be edited together with the footage available. Or, perhaps, even going back and creating a more fleshed out and quick paced second web series.

I would watch a second web series in a heart beat just to see Art Hall's performance and to see how the character of Nathan actually changes.

Sweet love story following a cute couple

[mrltulsa · 9/10 · 12 October 2016]

A super cute movie about love overcoming bumps in the road, baggage from old relationships, and breaking old habits. Nathan and Stephanie are cute couple that are better at loving each other than loving themselves. Laps is where they meet , running laps on a high school track and it's a great analogy for the circles they run themselves through.

The leads are great and played well off each other in both funny and intimate scenes. This is a great date movie and I definitely recommend to anyone who has trouble seeing through the messy part of a relationship.

Real, witty, romantic all leaving me with positive vibes

[aliemacartist · 20 February 2023]

I watch a lot of RomComs - this one hits all the marks and Amazon is bringing the unique ones this year! The writer and director team created real, relatable characters and Allison's Ally is what my age women are - in all their confident forward glory with moments of real insecurities - it was refreshing to see a character who could be funny, a little raunchy, career driven and yet finds that life is about learning to balance. We don't get it right all the time but the importance is that we recognize when we've become someone we aren't super stoked on. This movie took all the right turns, had the heart and sap I needed at just the perfect moments. Shot in the PNW for the win!

A story of real relationships, and occasional running.

[blackdevo · 9/10 · 26 October 2016]

The story of Laps is one of two individuals trying to improve their lives that meet while running laps on a track.

Nathan is an overweight, cigar-smoking man that tries to enlist regular jogger Stephanie to help him get into shape. After some awkward first few encounters, the two spark a friendship which evolves into a relationship. As their relationship builds, both realize that the other is a single parent.

The first bit of tension arises, as Nathan finds that Steph was cheated on by the father of her daughter, and Steph realizes that Nathan actually cheated on his wife. Despite this, they decide to continue with the relationship, promising to be fully honest with each other.

Nathan struggles with a failing career as a cartoonist, as well as being present in his son's life, despite the hostile interactions with his ex-wife. Steph works a desk job, but as dreams of singing professionally. Unfortunately, Steph is very self-conscious about her singing voice, as she only received negative criticism from her ex. The two butt heads as Nathan tries to encourage Steph, but is strongly rebuffed by her.

Eventually Nathan convinces Steph to perform at an Open Mic Night, which ends disastrously due to Steph's ex Joe showing up and shaking her confidence. Nathan doubts the strength of their relationship, which is further tested by an altercation between him and Joe.

During the second argument between the two, Nathan finds himself frustrated and walks away from both Joe and Steph. During this time, Nathan, out of frustration, has sex with his ex-wife, and is caught with her afterwards. Nathan denies that anything happened, but Steph clearly knows that something is wrong. As their relationship begins to spiral, Nathan admits to the affair, and instead of forgiving him, Steph decides to end the relationship.

At the end of the story, we find Steph in a new relationship, which appears to be a healthy one. In contrast, Nathan confronts Steph at the track, attempting to reconcile some sort of connection with her, which she makes clear she does not want. As she walks away from Nathan, we can see the regret and shame. As he looks up, we see Nathan's son as well as his ex-wife that is now pregnant with his child again.

I honestly loved that, throughout the film, the focus shifted from Nathan, to Nathan and Stephanie, to it becoming more of a survivor story for Stephanie as well as a massive reality check for Nathan.

Paralleling how true life operates, Nathan made "one mistake", albeit cheating on your significant other is a large one, and has to pay for it for the rest of his life. It's a tough lesson to learn, but it really is the way things work out sometimes.

There was a nice blend of comedy and emotion that plays well to how relationships work. Admittedly, some of the jokes were hokey, and a few fell flat, but the overall comedy well well thought out. The emotional moments, such as when Nathan asks if Steph still loves Joe, were very well done. Art Hall performs the scene well with depth and emotion. Rachae Thomas also brings honesty to her role that is refreshing to see.

There is a scene where Steph is mustering up the courage to sing in the elevator actually made me feel uncomfortable for her. That level of self-doubt mixed with the desire to pursue a passion is something that isn't always easy to portray accurately, without coming off disingenuous, but Rachael did a fantastic job.

In regards to some of the humor; at one point Joe (Steph's ex) and Nathan square off in a game of football for Steph's affection was almost too cheesy, until reality hits with Nathan's realizing that Steph planned to serve Joe with a restraining order, regardless of the outcome of the match. Nathann's anger for being played as a set piece to her plan felt genuine, as does his reaction of storming off in a mix of embarrassment and anger. This snapped the scene back into reality and actually made me feel bad about liking how silly the match was.

The score, as well as the song Steph writes and performs on Youtube, "Lion-ess", were well developed. It was fun to watch the evolution of that song, as the relationship rose and fell.

Overall this is a very good movie. The subject matter is poignant, and the leading cast act their roles very well. The majority of the humor is well done, and the intimate moments are spot on. This is a movie that is full of emotion and certainly worth the time to watch, and share in the somewhat tragic and uplifting experience with these two characters.