Becky Movie Review

My History With the Film:
I first heard about Becky when my buddy Michael sent me a text telling me Kevin James was playing a villain. I am a fan of Kevin James and was interested in seeing how the comedic actor could do in a straight villain role. I ran across a Redbox selling a copy of Becky for $3.99 on blu-ray and figured it was time to check it out.

What The Film Is About (Non-Spoiler):
A young girl is forced to defend herself and her family when several convicts coming looking for something in the family’s home.

Things I Liked About It:
-I watched this for Kevin James’ performance and I was not let down. He was menacing, cold, and calculating. Never once did I think back to his goofier roles and that impressed me. I will say however, his character was no super memorable and will not go down in history as cinema’s great villains, but that is more on the script than his performance. I’d love to see him in additional roles of this kind and possibly even a dramatic role.

-While much was said about Kevin James’ performance, Lulu Wilson (Becky) really stole the show. Her teen angst was not appealing but it did lead some credibility to her character’s actions. You do have to check your mind at the door and have a sort of Home Alone suspension of disbelief that an eighty pound girl could take on four grown men, but Lulu Wilson played it straight and her performance was as believable as possible.

-There is one particular gore scene that was quite cringe-worthy. It takes a lot to make me want to look away but this particular scene did. Kudos to the filmmakers for pulling that off.

-The movie never shys away from violence and has no problem going all out with the kills. It walks a very fine line between serious and comedy with how graphic some of the kills turned out. I gotta credit the script, performances, and director for keeping the film more on the serious side but not being afraid to walk up to that line and allow the violence to ensue.

Things I Didn’t Like About It:
-This type of story has been done before and the script provided nothing new. It’s a very paint-by-numbers story that I wish they would have interjected some originality into.

-The side plot of the dad’s new girlfriend was completely useless and I think it actually lessened the tension in the film.

Additional Notes:
-Simon Pegg was originally scheduled to play the Kevin James character but had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts.

Rating:
Becky was a fun Saturday afternoon watch for me but I forgot about almost by dinner that night. I went looking on the blu-ray for a commentary track which I would have loved to heard more about Kevin James’ casting, reason for doing this, etc. but there was nothing but a trailer to be found.

Becky is very much a middle of the line type of movie. It’s good for some quick entertainment, but there isn’t much to love. I say it’s a rental for fans of Kevin James and Lulu Wilson and probably worth skipping for everyone else. I rate Becky a two out of five blood knives.