Jennifer Lawrence gets a chance to show off her comedic gifts in No Hard Feelings, an old-fashioned, raunchy sex comedy.
She’s flashed those comedic gifts most often on talk-show appearances, so it’s fun to see her spread her raunch wings as Maddie, a lifelong Long Islander in danger of losing her home after losing her car, her source of income as an Uber driver.
She takes a gig with a couple of rich parents (Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti) who want her to take the virginity of their socially awkward son, Percy (Andrew Barth Feldman), before he heads off to Princeton. Her pay for such a task? A used Buick Regal.
The plot takes a very predictable path: Maddie transforms from an automobile opportunist into a true friend; goofy Percy becomes a man. It’s basically a standard plot trampoline for Lawrence and Feldman to score some pretty solid laughs along the way. Broderick and Benanti, who only have a few scenes, score some laughs, too.
This film contains, courtesy of Lawrence, the funniest nude scene in a comedy since Graham Chapman let it all fly in Life of Brian more than 40 years ago. Let’s just say the moment owes a little to David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises, which featured Viggo Mortensen doing some naked ass-kicking.
No Hard Feelings is good for some solid chuckles and is hopefully the beginning of a nice comedy phase in Lawrence’s career. She’s funny as all hell.
No Hard Feelings is now available for purchase via various streaming platforms, and will be available to rent on Aug. 29.
