“The Roses”: A Great Comedy With a Woke Hangover
Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman, The Roses brings some fun to the otherwise barren landscape of modern comedy.
My loss of faith in comedy films has been thoroughly documented on this website. We are living in one of the most unfunny times in cinema history, and that is a fact. But as sometimes I get tired of being so cynical and pessimistic, last weekend I got tickets to watch The Roses, encouraged by the presence of both Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman in the cast.
I’m surprised to report that I have good things to say about it: against all odds, I had a lot of fun watching this movie.
What is The Roses About?
Theo and Ivy are a British couple living in the U.S. Theo is a successful architect, and Ivy is a chef who has put her professional ambitions on hold to be a full-time mom to their twins. Both have different parenting styles, but they manage to keep a peaceful family life.
Encouraged by her husband, Ivy opens her own small restaurant, which starts with few customers. On his side, Theo is receiving praise for his design of the recently inaugurated naval history museum, the biggest achievement of his career. During a stormy night, the couple’s lives take a drastic turn.
The weather’s virulence makes the museum’s structure collapse, exposing Theo to public shame and destroying his reputation and career. But that same night, Ivy’s restaurant is visited by a renowned food critic, and a positive review catapults the business into notoriety.
Considering the circumstances, they agree to change roles for the time being: Theo will stay at home with the kids so Ivy can make the most of the moment and expand the restaurant into a chain. However, as time goes by, the cracks begin to show, turning the once happy marriage into a war zone.
Some Funny People (Finally!)
I was mildly disappointed to find out the movie is a remake. And me thinking I had stumbled upon something new! The original (which was based on a book) is called The War of the Roses and had Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito. As I have not watched that one, the new versión will be analyzed as a standalone project.
For starters, one of the most important elements in any movie is the characters, and in this aspect, The Roses made some excellent decisions. The main characters, Theo and Ivy, are charismatic and have defined personalities and interests. Their constant banter is witty and unfiltered, never feeling forced or out of place. They are a couple with a very distinct sense of humor, and they understand each other perfectly, which is fun to watch.
Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch are as great as expected. Their individual talent combined with great on-screen chemistry carries the whole movie. They both have the range to go from goofy to violently unhinged in no time.
A Mediocre Supporting Cast
The supporting characters, on the other hand, are a different matter. Sunita Mani and Ncuti Gatwa are given almost nothing to do, so I cannot criticize them, the same with Allison Janney, but Theo and Ivy’s friends are a disaster.
Kate McKinnon is the least funny person I have ever seen. As soon as she appeared on screen, I placed her from the infamous female Ghostbusters remake, and I guessed what I was about to see. Her character is a middle-aged married woman who has an open relationship with her husband and spends every second of screen time making lewd sex remarks and trying to convince Theo and Ivy (or both) to go to bed with her. As much as I enjoy a spicy comedy, this is just a lack of imagination and bad taste.
The other half of this disgusting woman is played by Andy Samberg, whose character is forced to put up with the “eccentricities” of his wife. And this is such a misopportunity, because, different from McKinnon, Andy Samberg is actually funny. Why not give him something more interesting to do?
I understand that Colman and Cumberbatch were expected to be the strongest actors in the production, but a good supporting cast is key to creating funny situations and opportunities to develop the protagonists further. This should never be overlooked.
Is The Roses Woke?
Yes, and no. Let me explain.
On the one hand, the comedy is quite dark. During the running time, the protagonists go from sarcastic remarks and public humiliation to straight-up murder attempts. So, they take the risk of being insensitive and offensive. Good.
Also, the plot develops some ideas that are not unfounded.
In a long relationship, sometimes people forget their partner’s contributions to the family are equally important to keep things afloat. The person who stays home and takes care of the children is as vital as the one who goes to work and earns the money to pay the bills.
Theo is resentful because he feels useless and wasted as a homemaker. And while Ivy initially feels great as an “empowered” woman, as time goes by, she realizes that it came with a cost: she ends up feeling alienated from her kids, who now are closer to their dad than her. A change of roles can shake the family dynamic, and in that sense, the film makes a valid point.
I Spy Some Bullshit
Now, if I know the industry a little, I’m almost sure that the point they wanted to make was that men cannot take it when their wife or significant other is more successful than them. They could never cope with everything a woman has to do in the house. In fact, the film falls into putting Theo in a worse light than his wife at times.
And of course, there are certain remarks about “patriarchy,” “masculinity,” and “colonialism” that made me roll my eyes. I’m convinced comedy can only come back once we have completely removed all those keywords from the scripts. There was also a joke about Americans loving guns that was initially funny, but they ran with it for too long. And there is “diversity” in the cast, though as they don’t make a big deal out of it, I didn’t mind.
What I mean is that I 100% believe that the film was made from a progressive mentality, but the final product is entertaining and well-rounded. You can watch it without being exposed to a sermon, which is a lot to say these days.
Box Office
With almost three weekends in theaters, The Roses is far from being a success. There is no official report on the production budget, but some sources set it between $20 million and $30 million. So far, the worldwide box office is struggling to get $35 million, which is not good news.
It does not surprise me. Maybe six or seven years ago, the actors alone would have been enough for many people to be interested, but not anymore. I did not see much of a marketing effort to promote the project, and the trailer I watched weeks ago in the theater had some woke hints that were pretty discouraging to me. This may not be a project for everyone, but it should have attracted at least enough moviegoers to break even.
I’m not sure if this is a general thing, but I found some bad reviews on Rotten Tomatoes that pointed out that The Roses is a poor attempt at remaking the original. So I believe that could also be a factor for older members of the audience, which, ironically, are the ones that could be more willing to pay for a ticket to watch a comedy in theaters.
Like I said last year, when I reviewed Anyone But You, the studios don’t seem to understand who their target is. I don’t see younger people being interested in a movie like The Roses, at least not massively. So why cater to them with the progressive talking points? Take care of the people who are most likely to pay for the product!
However, despite its flaws, the film made me laugh. The fact that the woke nonsense is being toned down (for the most part) and that many of the jokes actually hit shows some acknowledgment on the industry’s side. We’ll have to check in the next couple of years if the tendency continues or if the companies come up with a new approach to force-feed us diversity and inclusion. With some luck, the shadow of bankruptcy will bully them into being normal again. My fingers are crossed.
