This Hulu original time loop comedy/Rom-Com starring Andy Samberg and Cristin Miloti debuted in the US to a fair amount of acclaim last year. It was one of the films this critic was most eager to see get picked up, in the UK. Amazon finally gave it a home and it released a few weeks ago. Upon starting the film and seeing The Lonely Island variant of the Sony Pictures Classics logo appear on-screen this fan Was very Surprised and pleased. The trio Produced this although Samberg is the only one on-screen.
Watching the film their involvement makes total sense. Like all of the better stuff in The Lonely Island canon Palm Springs can combine the silly, gross-out and sincere in an effective and complete package Comedies use of a loop as a plot device is are nothing new or original. The film does offer some novelty with more focus put on singular variations of its loops. It doesn’t establish a preordained formula of events that the script and narrative then spend time deviating from. The opening 30 are the strongest.
The script establishes the various characters in the central scenario in a productive but engaging manner JK Simmons is an absolute scene-stealer. Things quickly evolve into a more emotion-driven narrative. It uses that runtime to go about swiftly but solidly showcasing the bond and burgeoning love between the two central characters. Things could have been even stronger if the ridiculously high laugh right of the opening act was maintained. This is not a huge problem. Palm Springs is still a very engrossing immensely enjoyable 90 minutes worth investing in.
Palm Springs works because it’s able to bring a level of inventiveness through a very well worn formula. It may not be as insanely quotable or memetic as The Lonely Island’s Popstar Never Stop Never Stopping. That film leans hard enough on the silliness that it was never going to win the deserved critical acclaim that the trio’s newest producing effort has. If viewers like any of the genres the film dips its toe into then it’s worth firing up Amazon or Hulu and investing 90 minutes of viewing time.
8/10.
A Little Bit Of Everything 