Director: Sherwin Shilati
Writer: Sherwin Shilati (Screenplay) Michael Mohan (Story)
Starring: Nick Thune, Halston Sage, Kaily Smith Westbrook, Nicholas Rutherford, Carly Chaikin, Gillian Alexy
Plot: An introvert realizes he can be whomever he wants to be on the Internet.
Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Verdict: Brilliant Study of Social Media
Story: People You May Know starts as we meet Jed (Thune) a photographer that helps clean up photos for magazines and photo shoots, he finally decides to join the social media age, which sees him capture the attention of social media manager Tasha (Sage) who has a plan to turn a nobody into a social media influencer.
With Jed’s star power raising he bumps into an old school friend and aspiring actress Franky (Westbrook) who gives him a new lease of life, but his secret online life only makes his life complicated if the two are to be a couple, as does Franky’s own life.
Thoughts on People You May Know
Characters – Jed has worked in photography for years now, his career is focused on improving photos for magazines, with simple airbrush techniques, he has never been involved in the social media side of life, until he meets a woman that makes him see a positive side of it. Once on social media he gets drawn into an experiment which sees him become an overnight sensation giving him more confidence in everyday life. Tasha is the social media manager that has been trying to break something out of her own, with seeing Jed as her experiment to make this happen, she knows the trends which could make somebody famous overnight. Franky is a realtor that has been working as an actress on the side, her life isn’t going the way she had hoped, until she meets her old school friend in Jed. Will the Jed’s best friend and most of the comic relief in the film as he is trying to push Jed into doing things outside his comfort zone.
Performances – Nick Thune is great in the leading role, he makes you believe that he is an average joe without being anything flashy in the film. Halston Sage brings to life an ambitious young woman trying to make a name for herself. Kaily Smith Westbrook shows the struggles of the aspiring actress whose dreams haven’t come true yet. Nicholas Rutherford gets the laughs in the film giving us the best friend performance required to guide Jed on the right path.
Story – The story follows a man that has never touched social media, who entered into that world mostly as an experiment which sees him becoming fake online only to fall in love without needing it, with him learning the reality of how harsh the social media world could be. This is a story that does put a spotlight on social media and how the younger the generation the more important it can be for the people involved, we get to see how the 30-somethings that are stuck in the middle of not knowing the importance to the young generation and with the older not touching it. The core of the story shows how people can meet people in the most unlikely places in the world, with or without the internet to help.
Comedy/Romance – The comedy comes from the laughs that the supporting characters of Will and Abigail tend to get, being the friends with laughs, the romance shows that life can become complicated and love appears when you least expect it.
Settings – The film is set in New York which keeps everything looking busy which reflects how love really works.
Scene of the Movie – The social media conversation with Franky about generations.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It does seem to lack enough laughs.
Final Thoughts – This is a brilliant look at how social media operates which does have characters you could easily understand with the fast-forwarding world we are operating in now.
Overall: Important look at social media.
Rating
