Another Simple Favor (2025)
Directed by: Paul Feig
Premise: A sequel to the 2018 film. Picking up the story five years later, Stephanie (Anna Kendrick) has written a book about Emily’s (Blake Lively) crimes. Stephanie is coerced to attend Emily’s wedding where murders occur.
What Works: 2018’s A Simple Favor was a light film that was built primarily on style. Echoing the appeals of Sex and the City and the Ocean’s 11 films, A Simple Favor showcased an aspirational view of American life with characters living in gorgeous homes and wearing impeccable outfits that were filmed with vibrant colors. The sequel continues that appeal and enhances it by relocating the setting to the Italian island of Capri. Much of the action is set around a wedding, creating ample opportunities to showcase this fashion magazine aesthetic. Another Simple Favor also continues the fun banter between Stephanie and Emily. The casting of Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively is these movies’ greatest strength and in the sequel their repartee has an additional edge because of the characters’ complicated past.
What Doesn’t: The original A Simple Favor was based on the novel by Darcey Bell and it was a self-contained story that did not suggest a sequel. That is evident throughout Another Simple Favor. This film has no reason to exist and the filmmakers never come up with one. It’s overwhelmingly obvious that Another Simple Favor was only produced because the first film made money and the title is known to the public. Lots of sequels are made for that reason but successful follow ups grow the characters, complicate the conflicts, and develop the themes. None of that happens here. Emily was an enigma in the first film and now that we know her secret there’s nothing compelling about this story. The first A Simple Favor was partially about suburban life and motherhood. The sequel isn’t about anything. The story is continually strained. Nothing is believable even within the context of this stylized story. Stephanie agrees to go to Emily’s wedding even though the previous film ended with Emily holding a gun on Stephanie and threatening to kill her. The filmmakers concoct a threat, implying that Stephanie is at the wedding under duress, but the rationale is transparently flimsy. A key guest is murdered the night before the ceremony. Everyone brushes this off, including the deceased’s loved ones, and they go ahead with the wedding with barely an acknowledgement of what’s happened. Things just get dumber from there. The final twist comes across as a desperate attempt to surprise the audience but it’s just contrived and confusing.
Disc extras: Available on Amazon Prime Video.
Bottom Line: Another Simple Favor is a pointless sequel. It has some of the superficial appeals of its predecessor but this is a hollow repetition and a stupid story.
Episode: #1047 (May 11, 2025)