Share and Follow
Jake Johnson writes, directs and stars in Self Reliance (now streaming on Hulu), an offbeat comedy falling under The Lonely Island production banner. It’s the directorial debut from Johnson, who we know from New Girl and Minx and, of course, for being the voice of Grouchy Smurf in the most recent Smurfs motion picture. While cooped up during covid lockdowns, Johnson penned an odd little high-concept story about a lonely fella who finds himself in a Most Dangerous Game-type situation that might just shake him from his dreary routine. Will the movie distract us from our own midwinter blahs? Let’s find out.
The Gist: Tommy’s (Johnson) rut is deep. Deeeeeeeep. Get up, treadmill, work, drink a beer, go home, start over, live die repeat live die repeat. Oh, and he lives with his mom (Nancy Lenehan). He’s been in this holding pattern since The Breakup. There’s still a photo of him and his ex on his nightstand – a selfie taken with the marquee for The Ellen DeGeneres Show in the background. Very silly. He sloughs along the sidewalk one day and a limo pulls up alongside him. Andy Samberg is in there, playing himself. Samberg is the bait. Tommy gets in and soon finds himself in front of two weirdos with a proposition: Participate in their dark web reality series. He’ll be secretly filmed while being hunted by assassins, and if they don’t kill him after a month, he’ll win a million bucks. One interesting rule: They’ll only kill him if he’s alone. If he’s with someone, he’s safe. What does “with someone” mean? Within hand-holding distance. In the same house with his mom isn’t enough, because a shadowy killer in a cowboy hat might snipe him through the window. Yikes, I say. Yikes.
Now, is this strange sitch Tommy’s reality, or are we just privy to his delusions? Not gonna answer that, of course. His mom and sisters (Mary Holland and Emily Hampshire) know he’s a sad sack who’s been through some shit, and they surely think he’s Going Through Something. They refuse to believe him, so of course they don’t help him. He goes about his usual day for a while, with an added slathering of the heavy frosting of paranoia atop his usual boring cake. Eventually, he hires a crazy hobo named James (Biff Wiff (yes, Biff Wiff)) to shadow him, and I’m sorry I used the insensitive term “crazy hobo,” it just came out that way, and rest assured, the movie takes pains to make him a real character instead of just a caricature.
Anyway, Tommy and James pal around for a while and Tommy gets fired because he’s bringing a crazy hobo to work with him. Tommy eventually connects with Maddy (Anna Kendrick), who’s also a contestant in the reality show, and also “dangerously bored,” and also living with her mother, and also a weirdo, and also a bit of a serial loner, and also has father issues, and each agrees to be the protective other for each other, so why, I ask, aren’t they doin’ it yet? “Within hand-holding distance” means one of the two can’t just sleep on the floor, so there’s a funny bit where Maddy’s mom (Miriam Flynn) comes in the room at bedtime and puts a big pillow between them. So is the combination of forced anti-isolationism and the threat of death making Tommy feel more alive yet? Yeah, I think so. But will he stay alive long enough to feel more alive than he has in a long time? NOT GONNA SPOIL IT.
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: I’ve already mentioned Most Dangerous Game, so cross that with the silly-sinister vibes of Game Night. Johnson also called Self Reliance “Jacob’s Ladder meets Bottle Rocket,” and we can totally see that.
Performance Worth Watching: Lenehan delivers a couple of knee-buckling one-liners, but Mr. Wiff is the true scene-stealer with his goofy sweetness and subtle gregariousness.
Memorable Dialogue: Tommy freaks out after the assassins track him down.
Tommy: Someone found me!
Tommy’s mom: Now that they’ve found you, well, move in with them.
Sex and Skin: None.
Our Take: Credit Johnson for being ambitious: He aims to integrate satirical comedy into a suspenseful thriller, and pairs a high-concept premise with the idea that personal growth doesn’t occur while one is psychologically segregated from society. But Self Reliance feels mildly unsatisfying in its execution. It’s only sporadically laugh-out-loud funny and doesn’t maintain the high-wire tension it needs to elevate it from moderately amusing to invigorating. The ending feels more like a mild deflation than the cathartic event we crave, and that the protagonist might deserve.
Consistency is the film’s strength, though. Johnson surrounds himself with an able and talented supporting cast (Lenehan, Holland, Hampshire and Flynn all have their moments), and Kendrick is delightful as ever in her weirdly bubbly way, although we’re left feeling like her lack of screen time – she’s in less than half the film – leaves some points on the field. And tonally, Johnson takes a tricky tack, cultivating understated comedy within a life-or-death scenario; he carefully avoids cliches, sprinkles in self-referential bits and surreal headtrippery, and avoids overemphasizing his protagonist’s emotional arc. There are times when it feels like the product of a first-time director actively working to find his footing behind the camera, but it’s a hopeful movie in both its message and for Johnson’s potential career as a filmmaker.
Our Call: Self Reliance is slightly more than enjoyable enough to deserve a recommendation. STREAM IT.
John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
