I Do…Until I Don’t is not only the title, but the perfect explanation of my opinion of this film. I do like it, or did, until about three quarters of the way in, when the plot turned so oddly you could hear the proverbial record scratching switch over.
But still, I would see it on the big screen. We need to support comedy as our country’s become much to maudlin and dour. I mean Marc Maron moaning that we’re in the ‘end times’ is ridiculous. The only comedian who seems to be immune (and thus my favorite) is Bill Burr.
So, let’s support Lake Bell who wrote and directed I Do…Until I Don’t. She is talented even if her character was a bit too annoying to be crowned protagonist. In fact, her massage parlor scene is worth the price of admission alone. Supporting her in that hysterical scene is someone for whom I came late to the fan club party, but boy, am I upfront now-Paul Reiser. From his excellent concerned Dad in Whiplash, to his funny cameo in The Little Hours, Reiser is as solid as Romano in the comedy world. Of the seven individuals depicted in I Do Until I Don’t, he was by far my favorite.
The actors, with the exception of Bell (at times), Reiser (all) and Ed Helm (all, who must have won Most Sincere superlative back in high school) were celebrities first, actors second. Mary Steenburgen (I see right through you) and Amber Heard (I see you and your post Johnny Depp/Elon Musk gorgeous self) suffered from characters too stereotypical to be real. Dolly Wells who I had never seen before, was funny as the rueful Brit documentarian, but again, her cliche lacked depth enough to take seriously.
The screenplay also suffered from too many people and sub stories (and I speak from firsthand experience with my own screenplay, Buck Up, which had the same fault). The Hollywood ending seems to be more of a necessity in comedies, though maybe next time, Bell will choose a darker shade to allow for something more real and open ended.
Still a gallant, worthy effort by Lake Bell.
