Director: Nico Raineau
Writer: Nico Raineau, Lauren Schacher (Screenplay)
Starring: Brittany Snow, Sam Richardson, Anna Akana, Jordana Brewster, Vivica A Fox, Amy Pietz, Shaun J Brown
Plot: After he receives a new cancer diagnosis and she is fired from her job as a sex columnist, Bailey and Darla take a road trip that forces them to get intimate with their issues, as well as each other.
Tagline – There’s more to love than sex.
Runtime: 1 Hour 44 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Hooking Up starts as we meet gym employee and cancer survivor Bailey Brighton (Richardson) who is in the middle of break up and the tragic news, the cancer has returned, he meets sex addict Darla Beane (Snow) who has just lost her job for her behavior and decides to make a story of her own sexual history, with Bailey joining her on the journey, replaying her history.
As the journey unfolds, the two start to learn about their pasts and how they have lived different lives along the way, but now they could help each other in the future.
Thoughts on Hooking Up
Characters – Darla is a sex addict who writes articles on sex for a magazine, she is assigned therapy which she isn’t happy about and her actions at work see her getting fired, in her own attempt to get her job back, she looks to go on a replay of her own history with a cancer victim, only to learn it is her own pain of love, which is causing more problems for her. Bailey is a mild-mannered gym employee who has beaten cancer, he is going through a break up and has discovered the cancer has returned, causing him to question everything and agree to join Darla on her journey, stepping outside his own comfort zone for the first time in years. Liz is the ex-girlfriend that has broken up with Bailey after encouraging him to look to date other people, she will always support him and she does remain close with him. We meet the parents and the people who are supporting the two through their problems along the way.
Performances – Brittany Snow does bring as a character we wouldn’t expect to see from her, here one that does have her problems that covered up with her confidence. Sam Richardson steals the show here as a gentle kind characters that has been lost most of his life, which is what is causing him more problems along the way. The rest of the cast do give us strong performance throughout, understanding their characters in the world of the leads.
Story – The story here follows two people who are both in need of help, one is a sex addict who has spiralled out of control, while the other is a cancer sufferer who isn’t sure how to deal with his own future, not knowing what the future will hold, who end up going on a journey together. The story will give us a look at self-discovery from people who will need to start taking life a different direction, either from needing supporting through cancer, who addiction. It does show us how important it is to ask for help and let people in to support you, even if we do go down a misleading road at times.
Comedy – The comedy comes from seeing a lot of Bailey’s reactions to hearing Darla’s stories, the two have had different lives, which will see more reactions coming from them.
Settings – The film is a road trip movie, it doesn’t hit any of the major locations you would expect to see around the different cities, which shows us more of a normal life that Darla has been on.
Scene of the Movie – 1-year later.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It doesn’t seem to have a friend in Bailey’s life, even after everything he has been through, you would like to think he would have had a support bubble around him.
Final Thoughts – Hooking Up is a comedy that highlights the importance of friendship and relationships in life.