In All of Me, John Legend sings “Cause all of me loves all of you. Love your curves and all your edges. All your perfect imperfections.” It was hard to watch this movie without reflecting on those words, the way in which we live in the real world. We are all made up of the sum of our perfect imperfections. Somehow, the writers of I Feel Pretty seemed to miss this oh-so-obvious point, at least until the very end. I understand that the main character was the sum of her insecurities, but she was so shallow that she could not imagine that those with better looks, better bodies, or more money might also have similar insecurities. Billed as a comedy, this movie had more pathos than humor. Since the actors around Amy Schumer did not see what she saw, they portrayed befuddlement on the screen. 110 minutes of befuddlement is boring, not entertaining.
Renee works way off-Broadway for a cosmetic company, certain that her life would be perfect if only she had better looks and a better figure. While exercising, a bump on her head causes her to believe that she is now the equivalent of a beautiful model. This “new” person is now brimming with confidence, enough to seek out new opportunities at work and in her personal life. No one else notices a physical change, but her close friends notice a personality change, not for the better. How long will this new Renee last? What will be the consequences when she finally realizes that she is still the same old Renee?
I applaud Amy Schumer (Renee) for being brave enough to expose all her cellulite, but fat isn’t funny. Michelle Williams plays the boss (Avery) of the cosmetic company who has a very annoying squeaky voice. I would be surprised if she hasn’t fired her agent for allowing her to take this part. She is so miscast it is embarrassing to watch her. Lauren Hutton as Avery’s grandmother and founder of the company is the only actor worth watching but she is barely on the screen. Rory Scovel is Renee’s boyfriend but he spends the entire time wondering who is the woman.
The writers attempt to save the movie with a big speech at the end, but it is too late. Too much mockery has been put forth. I wish I could say that the trailer had the best parts. But since the trailer wasn’t very good, I can only conclude that the trailer and the movie were equally bad. Save your money on this one, folks. It will be on the small screen very soon. With a budget of $32 million, the producers will want to get as much of their money back as they can, and quickly, before word of this bomb becomes too widespread. In my humble opinion, Amy Schumer needs to re-think the direction she is going in her movie career. Of course, I think the same for many of the Saturday Night Live alumni. But Hollywood seems to find the money to keep financing these lame efforts. But for how long?