Movies
“Shiva Baby” Is Awkward Humor Done Right (Meaning I Can Bare It)
Shoutout to a couple of my coworkers, Stefan and Jordyn. Both of them put me onto Shiva Baby (2021) and they were both correct in saying it’s a very good movie.
“At a Jewish funeral service with her parents, a college student runs into her sugar daddy and ex girlfriend.”
Director: Emma Seligman
Writer: Emma Seligman
Staring: Rachel Sennott, Danny Deferrari, Fred Melamed, Polly Draper, Molly Gordon
Release Date: April 2, 2021
IMDB
Shoutout to a couple of my coworkers, Stefan and Jordyn. Both of them put me onto Shiva Baby (2021) and they were both correct in saying it’s a very good movie. When I heard the premise, I immediately thought that it would be too cringe for me, but now credit must shift to writer and director Emma Seligman for making a movie that feels remarkably natural. The conversations all feel ad-libbed in the best way possible. The actors all slip into their roles as eagerly as a cold foot into a new sock. Shiva Baby does dive into the awkwardness off an Olympic size diving board, but the movie lands without making a large splash and scores a great score, even for an easy cringing character like me.
Danielle (Rachel Sennott) is a college senior working through various life struggles. She doesn’t know what she wants to do. She doesn’t know who she wants to be, and she doesn’t what’s going to happen after graduation. Danielle is introduced to the audience having sex with her sugar daddy Max (Danny Deferrari). After getting paid, she quickly jets out of his luxury apartment because she has to meet up with her parents Joel (Fred Melamed) and Debby (Polly Draper) to attend a shiva at her aunt’s house.
Immediately upon arrival, Danielle is bombarded with personal questions from caring family members. The “you’re so skinny” comments immediately fall to the floor like wilted leaves when Max walks through the door. Danielle learns that Max worked for her dad, and to make the awkward matter worse, Joel reveals that Max is married. Danielle had no idea, therefore so is immediately and understandably shaken.
You want to turn the uh-oh knob up even more? Max is married, and he has a kid. This youngling is carried through the door by his beautiful wife Kim (Dianna Agron). Danielle’s brain is boiling over with frantic fright when she is introduced to Kim. Danielle does the unimaginable and turns down a job opportunity from Kim, who seemingly is the women that she would like to grow into herself. Family members are beginning to take notice of Danielle’s erratic behavior, but the one who notices the most subtlest of changes is Maya (Molly Gordon).
Who is Maya? Oh, she is Danielle’s ex-girlfriend. Right? Like there aren’t enough knots in this tangled net. Maya and Danielle don’t have the most gracious reunion, but it doesn’t take a college degree to tell that the sassiness shared between them stems from hidden feelings left unsaid. The two young women go back-and-forth sharing looks and verbal barbs, and things get really murky for Danielle when Maya finds out about what she has been doing for extra money. The pressure of knowing that her secret is known by someone other than herself and Max pushes Danielle to the edge of the cliff. Eventually a final prompt near the end of the shiva cracks Danielle’s splintering outer shell.
Shiva Baby is a blitzkrieg of awkwardness. Yet, with that being said, the constant bombardment of cringe flows with a metronomic beat that invites the audience into its rhythm. The screenplay written by Emma Seligman brings to live dialogue and characters that all seem inspired by true events. Whether it be the overbearing parents, the fraught romantic relationship or the uneasy sugar daddy business dealings; all of them have moments that seem too over-the-top to seem purely fictional. Watching Shiva Baby, one can believe that the Mark Twain phrase “truth is stranger than fiction.” was an inspiration for this incredibly personal story.
Rachel Sennott plays the part of Danielle expertly because this is not the first time, she has played the part. 2021’s Shiva Baby is adapted from Emma Seligman’s 2018 short film of the same name, and Sennott was the lead in that as well. The most effective part of her portrayal are her eyes and how glazed over they get at times. Sennott plays disinterested very well. It is hard to make a character not listening to conversations hard to watch, but some of those moments are the most awkward in Shiva Baby.
The two best characters are Danielle’s parents, Joel and Debbie. You could tell me Fred Melamed is playing himself and I would 100% believe it. The overtalking father willing to bend his back for anyone so fucking endearing to watch. He always has the best point of view of his daughter and can’t believe that she would do anything wrong on purpose. Every little decision that Melamed does works. The cleaning out the van, needing to be cared for by Debbie non-stop and persistence in being the final chauffer make his character someone I would want to meet in real life.
Debbie is there besides Joel, berating him (lovingly) at every turn. Her comments toward her daughter are biting, but it is like a cat’s love bite rather than a malicious maul. Debbie also commiserates with the other attendees of the Shiva with ease, shifting her non-stop moving talking onto different talking points and different rumors. I love the chemistry between Draper and Melamed; one could believe they could walk into a party together and pull of married in real life. They would be an absolute hoot to sit with at a wedding.
Shiva Baby also has one major positive attribute that can’t go unremarked on. This movie is 77 minutes long. 77 minutes is a fucking breeze. I will watch any move that is 77 minutes. And the fact that Shiva Baby is actually a great watch, well that is just a fantastic perk.
There are few to no excuses for you not to check out this really unique and devilishly funny coming-of-age comedy.
Shiva Baby is streaming on Max.
STANKO RATING: B+
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