BJ Novak plays Ben, a writer and aspiring podcaster. The story begins with him and a friend at a bar being consummate douche bags, comparing notes on their banal philosophy and the many women in their lives, with each responding to whatever the other one says with "100%". Later, Ben gets a call from Texas the brother of "girlfriend", which turns out to be a girl he hooked up with and doesn't really even remember. The brother tells him they're calling her death an OD, but he thinks she was murdered. He decides to go and make the whole story the subject of a podcast.
You see in broad strokes where this is going, because the "shallow city person finds meaning in rural America" is a VERY well worn trope (I mean, darn near *every* movie on Hallmark is some variation on the female version); nevertheless, this manages to be a mostly fresh take. He of course finds the family and the people of her town much more deep and interesting than he originally thought, and believe it or not Ashton Kutcher kind of steals the show as the surprisingly insightful owner of a local recording studio.
It's a bit ham handed at times, but manages to stay engaging and entertaining throughout, and while the ending isn't exactly believable, I definitely didn't see it coming.
Overall, very enjoyable. I hope we'll be seeing more of Mr. Novak in the future.
You see in broad strokes where this is going, because the "shallow city person finds meaning in rural America" is a VERY well worn trope (I mean, darn near *every* movie on Hallmark is some variation on the female version); nevertheless, this manages to be a mostly fresh take. He of course finds the family and the people of her town much more deep and interesting than he originally thought, and believe it or not Ashton Kutcher kind of steals the show as the surprisingly insightful owner of a local recording studio.
It's a bit ham handed at times, but manages to stay engaging and entertaining throughout, and while the ending isn't exactly believable, I definitely didn't see it coming.
Overall, very enjoyable. I hope we'll be seeing more of Mr. Novak in the future.