Trainwreck (15) | Close-Up Film Review

In the US at least, there has been much hullabaloo around this movie, with modern comedy hotshot director/producer Judd Apatow (Knocked Up, The 40 Year Old Virgin and others) saying that Schumer, a comedian known only in the States for her cable show “Inside Amy Schumer” is something raunchy, new and different.

Schumer wrote and stars in Trainwreck, and her character – and that of her sister Kim – use the same names and real life circumstances, including the fact that their father is really in a nursing home too.

Following her TV persona then, Amy of Trainwreck is a boozin’, tokin’ gal with a tendency for one night stands, but nevertheless a desire to get on in life (whatever that means). She’s like many women we all know or have known, in fact. And she doesn’t seem to be a trainwreck, frankly.

This being a film – and based in reality – she and happily-married and pregnant with number two sister Kim (Brie Larson) clash a lot about this – and about the care of their sick pa Gordon (Quinn), who, while seemingly in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, is still rude, rough and ready – and advised them both at a tender age that monogamy doesn’t work. Clearly only 50% of his daughters took that on board.

Anyway, Amy naturally hates sports and so is bummed to get an assignment from her magazine boss Dianna (a hilarious Tilda Swinton) writing about nerdy sports doctor Aaron (Bill Hader). He’s a sweet charmer though, and so of course Amy gets drunk and beds him – but for some reason she breaks her rule and stays overnight.

Disaster has to be coming though, right? Surely something will sabotage all of this? Amy can’t be falling in love – can’t even be loved, maybe – and yes, it all falls apart later on (sort of), but then she decides to get it together in montage-quick time.

For the first half of the story, we’re in the territory of light comedy with some allusions to Woody Allen but with more raunch. There are some funny lines, some funny moments, Hader really works hard to take Amy as she is – which is actually rather unlikeable and selfish. It’s a problem that dogs her and the story throughout, as we’re never quite on her side and want her to be happy: she seems happy enough as she is anyway really, and perhaps, like she reasons, Aaron doesn’t end up with someone like her.

Second half is when the wheels come off a little, the emotional “drama” seeming highly contrived, the weak arguments and actions of both Amy and Aaron seemingly unlikely based on what we’ve seen before, and the tone veering more between heavy drama and smirky/smutty comedy gags (perhaps the legacy of writing a sketch comedy show). Mix in some unnecessary cameo appearances that stretch the running time too long as well, and it’s all gone very much towards fulfilling the title.

And then there’s the ending which, without spoiling it, certainly quashes any sense that Amy being herself – or even just toning down some of the more embarrassing or dangerous elements bits – isn’t what a man/Aaron wants.

No, a man doesn’t want a woman who can act “like” a man and be quite happy. No, according to Schumer/Apatow, a man wants something specific – and women have got to fit their square peg into that round hole no matter what; so Amy does so.

It’s a shame, because there were many more ways the ending could have gone and we would have been happy with it, still feeling  that Amy (at least) was changing a little in discovering a valuable relationship, but was still essentially herself. But no. What a pity.

Review by James Bartlett