Emergency

2 black students are planning a last bash by touring all the clubs. Visiting their Latino friend's house they find a white, high school girl unconscious on the floor. Given the potential reaction if they do, they debate whether to call 911.

Excellent performances by the 2 leads and a wonderfully witty script make for one of the better comedies of the year. Whilst the first 2 thirds is often hilarious - a couple come out of a their house with a 'black lives matter' sign on their lawn and immediately accuse them of drug dealing - the film slowly becomes more serious as their arguing intensifies, as does the fear of the police / fear for the girl. Ultimately it is a well crafted, but funny indictment of a divided America where racism is seemingly still pretty endemic.

I thought parts of this movie was as funny as it gets. Not everyone gets satire. I'm even a white guy and I get the satire in this movie. You should try it. It's worth the try.

Firstly, the the hate reviews are clearly coming from the anti-woke brigade that clearly don't even understand what woke means if it hit them in the face.

Ok, so on to the film.

I was pleasantly surprised with this one.

Starts off as a college buddy comedy, but not full blown laugh out loud levels.

It's got some good laughs here and there but is quite witty as well.

The film very slowly starts to gives things a more serious feel from about half way through.

By the end it does make a clear social statement, there's no denying that.

However it's a very real and accurate social statement.

People that don't like the truth just hide behind hate reviews and think they're achieving something, when all they're doing is embarrassing themselves.

The film has decent production value and well cast.

Pretty decent performances all round as well.

At its core, Emergency has an incredibly interesting and important story to tell. However, it fails to deliver a truly engrossing or cinematic experience. Scenes run long and there is a stark lack of music throughout most of the film. It results in a viewing experience that feels like "I'm just watching things happen" rather than watching a specific, artistic creation.

Still, I think there is a strong base to the movie's story, the actors' chemistry, and the characters' relationships. I simply wish there was more personality to the filming. A movie like this would have been much more engaging with a Jordan Peele-like take, honing in on the horror or suspense of the situation. Or perhaps, a stronger lean into the comedy. The actual result is a movie that fails to be very funny when it means to be, and also fails to deliver much suspense when needed.

For someone who is African American, it felt very relatable. Really enjoyed the movie and understood why they did what they did. If you've never been in the shoes of the main characters you would never understand the reasons behind their actions. I would watch it again, great cast!