"No Hard Feelings" (2023): A Review

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After taking a mini-hiatus, Jennifer Lawrence is back and better than ever in her new comedy, “No Hard Feelings”, which turned out to be 2023's raunchiest comedy yet. Lawrence's character, Maddie, responds to an online ad put up by two parents requesting someone to “date” their anti-social son, Percy (played by Andrew Barth Feldman), before he goes to college. Hilarity ensues as Maddie, the 32-year-old, tries various methods to get Percy, the nineteen-year-old, to open up to her both emotionally and sexually, and their awkward age-gap plays into a lot of the movie’s comedy, leading to a lot of laugh-out-loud moments in the theater. Underneath the slapstick humor is a lot of heartfelt moments and messages, like learning to let go of the past, and what sets this movie apart from other comedy movies is the way in which it is executed. Directed by Gene Stupnitsky, “No Hard Feelings” is both a riotous comedy and a feel-good movie for the summer, and it is executed perfectly with the comedic duo of Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman.  

The film takes place in Montauk, New York, and Maddie’s struggling to keep her deceased mom’s house away from the state due to missed payments, despite juggling two jobs as a bartender and an Uber driver. When her car gets taken away for missing more payments, it seems all hope is lost with Maddie as she lost the means for one of her jobs, but while scrolling through online ads for used cars, she stumbles across an ad put up by two parents promising a Buick Regal to the person who “dates” their son, Percy, and gets him out of his shell. So out of desperation, Maddie meets with the parents and secures the job, and the parents have one rule for her: Percy cannot find out about the arrangement between the two parties. Maddie and Percy’s first encounter together doesn’t go as smoothly as she plans (mace and a hose was involved), but the pair start to spend more time together and go on an array of different dates, ranging from the arcade to laser tag to the boardwalk. A lot of the humor comes from Maddie’s attempts to get Percy to open up to her, with the teenager’s awkwardness and the woman’s determination combining to create naturally comical scenes and bits.

However, it’s through the duo’s natural chemistry that the deeper meanings sprinkled throughout the film very carefully bloomed by the end of the movie. Both Maddie and Percy have issues with letting go of their pasts, but through each other, they can finally let go of the things holding them back and be able to spread their wings. A storyline with Maddie is that she has a tough time forming emotional connections romantically, and as soon as there is any sign of a big commitment, she runs way. With Percy, she can understand, through an obscure Chinese finger-trap metaphor, that leaning into these connections with other people will set her free. The delivery of these meaningful life lessons is done so easily through the natural chemistry of Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman, which is what makes the film more enjoyable and fun to watch. 

Going more in-depth into the characters, Jennifer Lawrence was made to be a comedic actress. This film was like a breath of fresh air for the actress’s filmography, especially after films like “The Hunger Games”, “Don’t Look Up”, and “Mother!”. Jennifer Lawrence recently took a break from acting, getting adjusted to married life as well as adjusting to motherhood, but she’s back and better than ever with her performance in this movie. Off camera, Jennifer Lawrence is known for her natural humor and awkwardness, which played into bringing the character of Maddie to life. Young actor Andrew Barth Feldman was also phenomenal to watch, and he is one to watch in Hollywood. He had a small role in “White Noise”, which starred Greta Gerwig and Adam Driver, and “No Hard Feelings” is his first big Hollywood move role.

The supporting characters did help progress the story forward as well, with Mathew Broderick and Laura Benanti as Percy’s parents and Natalie Morales as Sara (Maddie’s closest friend). Ebon Moss-Bachrach was also a fun person to watch, especially in his interactions with Maddie. It is through him audiences get introduced to Maddie’s problems with commitment, and it is through him audiences see Maddie overcome those issues at the end of the movie. But really, the comedic duo of Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman is what really made this movie successful, despite the critic reviews. 

A pairing of a thirty-something year old woman and an upcoming college student are not particularly popular subjects in a rom-com, but that is what makes the movie much more memorable. Since it did not follow the traditional rules of a romantic comedy movie, it made it all the more exciting to watch. For movie goers who are not the biggest fan of the same old love stories, “No Hard Feelings” is the perfect movie to watch while still getting that dose of love and connection subtly weaved in. What makes this movie successful is how natural the messages came to be. A lot of movies nowadays tends to force deeper themes to the audience, feeling unauthentic. “No Hard Feelings” perfected the ratio of humor and deep meaning, making the themes of the movie hit in a satisfying way.