‘The Bubble’ is a comedy film directed by Judd Apatow that revolves around the production of a blockbuster film within a bubble amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The film is now streaming on Netflix.
Story
Gavin is a producer at a studio that is on the verge of going under unless they successfully produce yet another film in their famous franchise, Cliff Beasts. He gets all the cast together to a hotel in London where they are to shoot the film.
With the threat of covid, everyone on set has to adhere to several safety protocols but the whiny and entitled actors cannot stand being restricted so much that they disregard many of the rules.
Carol Cobb is coming off an ill-judged film and joining the cast of Cliff Beasts after not taking part in the production of the last film. This makes things quite frosty between her and the rest of the actors. Dieter is a veteran who’s just there for a paycheck.
Lauren and Dustin are recently divorced but they still have an unhealthy attraction toward each other that often impacts the film. Dustin constantly tries to rewrite the script because he thinks he has better ideas.
With all of these eccentric personalities in such close quarters, it’s up to Gavin and the director, Darren to rein them in and get this movie made.
Performances
All the actors do a brilliant job of playing stereotypical and exaggerated versions of actors that most people hear about. They bring out their strengths and weaknesses in front of and behind the screens.
Karen Gillian is the pseudo lead in this film and she’s wonderful in her role as the actress who seems like she’s always complaining and causing trouble on set with her behaviour.
David Duchovny and Leslie Mann play the celebrity couple working together and it’s fun to watch them go through a roller coaster relationship during the shooting of the film.
Iris Apatow is surprisingly charming as the young modern influencer who barely knows what’s going on at any point. She flits between dumb as a doorknob and sufficiently coherent and talented enough to make elaborate Tiktoks.
There are so many more cast members and even guest appearances that add to the star-studded experience of this film perfectly.
Positives
The film never takes itself seriously, and that’s what you sometimes need from a film. Its main goal is to entertain the audience without too much effort.
The actors look like they must have had so much fun making this film that always leads to a better product. Watching them perform dance Tiktoks as part of the movie was thoroughly enjoyable.
The inclusion of surprise guest appearances at so many key moments is always a treat and worked perfectly for a parody of this nature.
Negatives
The script is not something to really write home about. Most of the work done within the film comes from the larger than life performances which means the writers did not put as much into the dialogue.
The film does experience a short lull around the hour mark. There are a few side plots that could have been overlooked and it would not change the overall product.
Verdict
‘The Bubble’ is a parody of the film industry that blows up every single personality to offer up a very fun and casual experience. There is an attempt to emulate the success of Tropic Thunder and although it does not hit the same heights, it manages to stand up admirably in its own right.
Rating: 2.5/5