When I see an underdog film which spotlights an alienated group I’m in. Add some spice and comedy and I’ll double down. So Scrambled ended up being my type of egg.
The origin of Scrambled comes from writer, director and lead actress Leah McKendrick, who I had never heard of before, but after researching found she’s been a sought after writing ingenue in the California area for quite sometime.
The basic plot revolves around a woman in her mid 30’s who starts to worry about the old biological clock as the sole single gal in a gaggle of married friends. Sounds like a tired scenario, but McKendrick infuses it with intelligent comedy. Quality comedy comes from truths and there was a lot of familiar accuracy to McKendrick’s portrait of both men and women. Some accurate examples used here were: men who were former cads who then score wildly successful women, men who are emotionally unstable who gaslight and scapegoat women. Credible traits involving women were the types that flaunt and weaponize their ‘miraculous’ relationship to single women and others with such ‘well meaning’ advice of “you’ll find someone once you love yourself”.
Funny sex scenarios and a core of standout supporting actors helped make this work: Ego Nwodim (form SNL) was great as Leah’s bestie, cute Andrew Santino as her rich brother and Clancy Brown as her curmudgeonly Dad.
Sweet neighborly vulnerability personified by both Leah McKendrick and her neighbor played by Vee Kumari brought me nearly to tears. To be turned on, made to laugh and almost cry all in one film is a feat. And any cinematic boost to a single gal’s confidence is worth a pot of gold. Bravo!
