About the film (courtesy of Focus Features):
This is a darkly comic thriller about Ben Manalowitz (B.J. Novak), a journalist and podcaster who travels from New York City to West Texas to investigate the death of a girl he was hooking up with.
I enjoy the big flashy film productions as much as the next person. And seemingly every year these titles become larger and larger in both cost and also what these studios are trying to throw at audiences to justify these unfathomable budgets. Let’s face it, we live in a world where the bar is constantly raised, and throwing resources and dollars around is a common practice towards hopefully seeing a return on those big ole investments. Sometimes lost in all of this cash-rich chaos, is the focus on the little things like substance that help make up an enjoyable movie.
Rather than naming off countless films that missed their marks of perceived success, just know that there are quite a few out big-budget ones out there that, once everything was tallied, came up light in the impactful metrics arena. Then there are the ones that most folks don’t remember that are actually worth the watch and the money, but they’ve faded away into obscurity because they weren’t given the same opportunity as others to be in the spotlight (The Outfit (2022) for example). This is where a smaller, but very well crafted, film like Vengeance will most likely fall.
B.J. Novak, probably most notably known as playing Ryan Howard in the American sitcom The Office, serves as the writer/director/executive producer and star of the mystery thriller Vengeance, which also contains its fair share of comedic moments. Novak presents a seemingly simple story that grows in complexity, emotion and human interest as pushes towards its meaningful conclusion a mere 94 minutes later. Thank you for this.
The solid storytelling should probably come as little surprise since Novak has had his fair share of success behind the camera while lending his skills to the aforementioned The Office as well as a television series that he created called The Premise. Vengeance keeps its story tight while not veering too far off the road, while also keeping the audience guess where this journey will lead next.
In addition to B.J. Novak, he also enlists a talented group of actors to help bring this story to life. Issa Rae, Boyd Holbrook, Dove Cameron, Ashton Kutcher and heck, even John Mayer lend their skills in making this a well-acted story that never gets too large for the screen. The situational drama and emotions throughout are more than enough to get people to buy-in. This is one of those plots that is very clear, that much time and effort went into creating and polishing this up.
Much respect to Novak for taking a risk and being a small, but steady voice in room full of yellers and screamers that pound their chests, making a spectacle of themselves in the name of art and entertainment. Vengeance is a breath of fresh air in a crowded arena full of hot air and smoke. In a time when most are going big, it’s refreshing to something that goes smaller while paying attention to all the details that often get glossed over. You can catch this R-rated pleasant surprise in select theaters starting this evening.
