The film is billed as a comedy, and while it does have its moments of ridiculousness, it’s more an adult coming of age story about Laura, as she is finally forced to grow-up, become a real mother and take control of her life. There are some fun intercuts between Laura’s deposition and a talk she gives as a 9/11 widow at Dennis’ school. I really wanted more of this intelligent movie making, where the humor and irony are so powerful I don’t know if I should laugh or cringe. Unfortunately, these moments are few and far between. Mostly it limps along at a mediocre speed with a predictable ending.
Laura is played by The Office’s Jenna Fischer, who brings the same sweet spinelessness to this film. Given that Laura doesn’t have much to do, Fischer didn’t have a whole lot to work with. Her best moments are when she loses it with her son and the two engage in “You suck!” shouting matches. Her energy and frustration jump off the screen. At times, I wanted to yell at the characters, too. But too much of Fischer’s energy goes unharnessed and she seems to be holding back what she knows will only go unused.
Kathy is played by Brooke Smith and mom is played by Leslie Ann Warren. Both ladies do a great job piling on the pressure and being as unpleasant as possible. It was especially nice to see Warren break away from a long string of floozy roles and show she can do more than simper and bat her eyelashes. Rob Benedict rolls out Paul’s dry sense of humor with fantastic timing, but lacked conviction that robbed Paul’s character of being an actual contender for Laura’s affection.
Ultimately, this movie just wasn’t smart enough to be funny, original or even really entertaining. It does have its few great moments, but not enough good ones to make it worthwhile as a whole.
A Little Help was written and directed by Michael J. Weithorn and is rated R.
