Review: The Lovebirds

Image courtesy of Netflix.

Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae make for nice company and have good chemistry in the new comedy "The Lovebirds," which was originally slated for theatrical release earlier this year and since picked up by Netflix, so it's a shame that the film feels like a missed opportunity. The duo does a nice job of creating the vibe of two people who make for good hangout pals, but come to grow tired of each other while dealing with the realities of romantic relationships and living with someone else.

This chemistry between the pair finds itself dropped into a silly story in which the couple - Jibran (Nanjiani), a documentary filmmaker who is sensitive about his work, and Leilani (Rae), an advertising executive - witnesses the murder of a guy on a bike when a mustachioed man commandeers their car and runs over him, and then the couple freaks out and flees from the scene, thinking they are the police's prime suspects in the murder.

Jibran and Leilani attempt to do the thing that only people in movies do - crack the case themselves. This leads them to break into a frat house, where they are led to believe the murderer has some connection with its inhabitants. Prior to that, they get taken captive by a woman who offers them their choice of torture - hot grease to the face or being kicked in the chest by a horse. Late in the film, they end up at a ritualistic orgy that looks like lost footage from "Eyes Wide Shut."

Nanjiani and Rae make the material watchable because they are both likable and funny, but the material just isn't that good to begin with. Nanjiani proved himself an actor worthy of funny line readings, but also pathos, in the acclaimed "The Big Sick," while Rae recently impressed in the romantic drama "The Photograph." In each case, the actors were given more to do than try to sell somewhat stale comedy gags as they are forced to do here.

One of the few funny jokes that lands is their being seen by all who come across them as the annoying couple that argues - and their constant squabbling over nonsense (such as details surrounding the TV show "The Amazing Race," for instance) is relatable because you feel like you've come across such a couple in your own experience. I laughed a few other times during "The Lovebirds," but not nearly enough considering the talent involved. It's not a bad movie - just a mostly forgettable comedy of the type that Hollywood cranks out multiple times per year.