Molly and Abbey, along with their crew of close friends and acquaintances, host a dysfunctional, comical, and chaotic Thanksgiving dinner.
Abby (Kat Dennings) and Molly (Malin Akerman) have been best friends for a long time and are dealing with a break-up and a divorce. They want to have a low-key Thanksgiving, but those plans quickly change when their friend, Lauren (Aisha Tyler), has plans that fall through. Now Abby and Molly must prepare for a large Thanksgiving feast with their friends while trying to keep it together.
I never laughed once during this movie despite the comedic talent in the film. The ensemble did seem to work well and have fun together, it was just that the script was not funny and this last-minute “Friendsgiving” does not feel plausible. Most people have plans for Thanksgiving, whether it is eating with family, Black Friday shopping, etc. It does not feel real that so many people would come over at the last minute.
I related to Dennings’ Abby the most out of this film. She has been dumped and is still not over it, and all she wants to do for Thanksgiving is complain and pig out. If a plethora of uninvited and unexpected guests showed up, I too would be incredibly annoyed and would escape at every opportunity I could. Abby often retreats to Molly’s baby room when she needs to mope (which is often).
This whole movie is about partying, which I never really have been a fan of watching actors do, especially since this all feels like a fake party. Not to mention the shenanigans that ensue at this party are pretty tame. Molly’s mom flirts with Molly’s ex, some of the girls do shrooms, and some potential love interests for Abby basically summarize their dating profile. There is no big, crazy moment that makes the party go out of control, it’s just full of people dancing and getting drunk.
I enjoyed Aisha Tyler and Chelsea Peretti the most in this film, but they are supporting characters and are charismatic. Malin Akerman and Kat Dennings had good chemistry together and were believable as friends, but otherwise, failed to make much of an impression. And this is more of a side note than anything, but Wanda Skyes is included on the Blu-ray cover, even though she is in only one 30-second scene in this film, something which I found to be misleading.
Molly’s baby is really the center of the movie, not the “friends” that make up this Friendsgiving. And while the baby is adorable, it is used more like a plot device for when Abby needs to escape the party or to show that Molly can be a responsible mother. The rest of the friends and party guests are reduced to be fairly stereotypical, one-note characters.
Overall, “Friendsgiving” is watchable enough, but the comedy falls flat, and the drama feels superficial. This movie would have more potential if it centered on a core group of friends made up of these comedic actresses, but the writing in this film just does not work and is a waste of these actresses’ talents.
Now available on Digital, On-Demand, Blu-ray™, and DVD
