Come as you are
2020
15
Director: Richard Wong
Starring: Grant Rosenmeyer, Hayden Szeto, Ravi Patel, Gabourey Sidibe, Janeane Garofalo, C S Lee, Jennifer Jelsema etc
Overall rating 66/100
Come as you are is about three disabled adults who are desperate to lose their virginity, but haven't had the opportunities to due to their limitations, so they all team together to travel to a brothel that specialises in people like them, where they will learn the true meaning of friendship. I wanted to like Come as you are a whole lot more than what I did, It had all the right ingredients just fell apart with the plot and lack of emotional connection to the movie, let's talk about this more in detail.
First of all, the movie was very funny. Had unique characters that aren't usually used in comedies, was inclusive and normalised disability. I loved that this movie had unique characters that aren't usually explored within a comedy with fear of offending people, it was really refreshing to have the whole main cast having some form of disability, this is because they could have jokes between them rarely used In other comedies out of fear of offending people but in this case it was very different, so the characters were refreshing and well explored throughout the movie, the movie was also very inclusive and normalised disability, this movie was not afraid to have characters with all sorts of disabilities, body shapes and capabilities, which was lovely to see, they didn't make it a big deal either which is the message they should be spreading with normalising disability, and seeing it through the characters perspectives in the film helped me gain a deeper understanding of what people with disabilities have to go through. The movie was also hilarious, I belly laughed on multiple occasions, the movies sarcastic humour and characters taking the mick out of themselves was a type of humour that I haven't seen a lot before so it was nice to see, with many awkward situations involving their disabilities involved with the characters were very funny as well.
My next few positives would be the likeable characters, character depth to the main character and good character background. Every single one of the characters had very likeable qualities to them, all three main characters had different and likeable personalities, with a great mixture of sensitive, funny and charming that all blended really well, I also appreciated the amount of depth they added to the main character, to see how much he struggled and wanted his independence but knowing his restrictions, was heart-breaking to watch and it really made you understand what his character was going through and the reasoning for his actions throughout the movie. I also liked the character background they put in for all the characters. The movie spent a good amount of time making you understand each of the characters and the dynamic with their families, all three having different experiences with their disabilities and different limitations was explored well.
However, my first few negatives would be the rushed beginning with a lack of character background and how predictable it was. They didn't allow any room for any form of background to the characters at the beginning and didn't give the movie enough room to breathe and just went straight into the main plot point which I personally didn't like. I also thought the movie was fairly predictable in parts, there was parts were some characters couldn't take part in the main plot point due to being in relationships, so it was obvious what it was going to happen and made parts feel rushed and it lacked deep enough thought.
My final few positives would be the charming tone, script, development of plot and characters and satisfying ending. The movie had a very charming tone, in terms of the growing connection between all the characters, and their relationships developing was just heart-warming to watch. The script was also excellent, and for me one of the best parts of the movies, the movie had so much clever and thoughtful dialogue that really made you understand the characters and a deeper understanding of people with disabilities. I also really liked the development of plot and characters, I really loved what the movie changed into, instead of a movie about three people going to a brothel and having sex, the plot developed and changed into a story about friendship and appreciating life which I loved, and I loved how all the characters had some form of change as the movie progressed and as everyone grew closer. The ending was also very satisfying, I loved that despite still going to the brothel the aftermath of this was handled very well and made the characters much more likeable and made things a lot more satisfying, they made the right decisions with the relationships with the characters and it was handled better than what I was expecting.
My final few negatives would be the main plot getting tired, the lack of depth to the characters or themes, and the questionable character decisions. The movie made some odd questionable decisions with the main character. Some things he said during the movie to some of the characters made him fairly unlikeable in places and the movie didn't try hard enough to make him more likeable. I also thought the main plot point of the characters going to a brothel got really tired for me and I wish they had gone for something different. With the amount of drama it caused for the characters they should have been going somewhere more important than a brothel. My final negative would be the lack of depth to the characters and themes, this was my biggest issue with the film, I was never emotionally connected to it whatsoever. Whenever there was something bad or a deep theme trying to be portrayed to the audience, they touched on the surface off It and never went deeper, making my connection to the characters and the film itself very limited.
Overall, despite a fantastic script, and characters that are so often forgotten about in film get the spotlight they deserve, I was never connected to the movie, due to it's unprofessional way of handling deep themes and often playing it safe.
