No Hard Feelings Synopsis: On the brink of losing her childhood home, Maddie discovers an intriguing job listing: wealthy helicopter parents looking for someone to “date” their introverted 19-year-old son, Percy, before he leaves for college. To her surprise, Maddie soon discovers the awkward Percy is no sure thing.
Montauk native Maddie (Jennifer Lawrence) is slowly being forced out of her modest home by skyrocketing property taxes. To try and pay off the debt, she works two jobs – one as a bartender and the other as an Uber driver. When her car is repossessed, Maddie sees an ad by a wealthy couple looking for a woman to “date” their awkward teenage son, Percy, before he heads off to college in the fall. In exchange for the “experience,” is a Buick Regal. Desperate, Maddie answers the ad, despite being well over the requested age.
She thinks “dating” (aka sleeping with) Percy will be a piece of cake, but Maddie quickly learns getting Percy to put out will be quite the challenge.
I didn’t know much about No Hard Feelings before watching it. All I knew was that it was being branded as a sex comedy starring Jennifer Lawrence, so that was good enough for me! Lawrence is one of my favorite actresses, so it’s been nice seeing her back and doing more films, especially one that shows off her comedic talent as No Hard Feelings does.
To say this movie is a sex comedy is probably a bit inaccurate. Yes, it has to do with Maddie trying to have sex with the oblivious Percy (a wonderfully adorkable Andrew Barth Feldman), but it’s fairly tame compared to others in the same genre. Both Maddie and Percy have depth in their characters, and the movie aims to make you care about these two people rather than shock you with ridiculous, raunchy shenanigans.
This is why I enjoyed No Hard Feelings more than I thought I would. It’s a sex comedy with heart, anchored by impressive, endearing performances by its lead stars. Despite the age difference, Lawrence and Feldman truly have wonderful chemistry, and while you know this isn’t going to be some grand love story, you sense their connection anyway. Maddie opens Percy up to a world he had been sheltered from, and Percy teaches Maddie that it’s okay to say goodbye to familiarity.
The supporting cast is just as lovely! Natalie Morales and Scott MacArthur play the married Sara and Jim, friends of Maddie’s who are also expecting their first child. They are Maddie’s voice of reason – sort of – while also bringing the laughs. Matthew Broderick and Laura Benanti play Percy’s helicopter parents. You have to wonder what they were thinking, but their love for their son at least drove their intentions, even if it went way beyond normal, acceptable parent/child boundaries.
I liked No Hard Feelings a lot. It was great to see this in theaters, considering it felt like every other theater was full of remakes, superheroes, or nostalgia. They don’t make movies like this anymore, and it seems to be doing well at the box office, so I hope that opens the door for more old-school comedies. I would love to see J Law in more rom-coms as well. She’s a fantastic dramatic actress but so underrated as a comedic one. Go see No Hard Feelings while you can, or at least give it a watch when it’s finally streaming.
Watched: 07/01/2023
Notable Song: Would You by Richard Swift
