Wren Pepper is in a pickle in screenwriter/director Jennifer Cram’s debut feature Sick Girl. Wren’s friends are quick to rally around her as she moves through her cancer journey. Unfortunately, Wren doesn’t really have cancer. She told a little white lie that suddenly morphed into a very big problem that just won’t go away.
What propelled Wren to tell that lie may be something most people can relate too, but nobody would actually admit to having cancer if it wasn’t true. That offbeat premise works in Sick Girl mostly because Cram doesn’t want the audience to sympathize with Wren, played by Nina Dobrev (Fam, The Vampire Diaries). The fun is in watching Wren writhe in guilt and shame. The result produces a middle-ground comedy that’s good for some escapist fun yet never fully reaches the high points you want it to.
The cast here delights, featuring Dan Bakkedahl (Veep), Wendi McLendon-Covey (The Goldbergs), Brandon Mychal Smith (Four Weddings and a Funeral), and Sherry Cola (Good Trouble).
A Film About Changing Friendships
Lionsgate
The film proposes an interesting question: What lengths would you go to in order to keep that tight bond with your longtime friends? Slacker Wren loves her BFFs, but something has dramatically changed. They seem to be growing apart and not spending as much time together. It happens. While Wren’s friends have all grown up, she’s still floundering emotionally. Jill (Hayley Magnus), Laurel (Sherry Cola), and CeCe (Stephanie Koenig) have solid families or established careers. Wren has a never-ending ache to still have them all around like they used to 15 years ago.
After setting up the story’s angsty dilemma, the filmmaker pits Wren at a house gathering where things head south. During a heated exchange with her friends that Wren can’t seem to wiggle out of, she randomly blurts out: “I have cancer.” That quickly diverts everybody’s attention. Suddenly, Wren is on the receiving end of tremendous compassion and attention. It’s everything she wanted. But now she doesn’t want it. Because she loathes herself for having told the lie. There’s some fun in watching how the following scenes play out. Besties Laurel, CeCe, and Jill want to be there for Wren when she sees the doctor during her next visit. The sham can’t go on forever.
Related: Exclusive: Filmmaker Jennifer Cram Chats Up Her Hilarious Nina Dobrev-Driven Comedy, Sick Girl
She is given another foil, too, and perhaps an opportunity to redeem herself when she meets Leo (Brandon Mychal Smith of Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) at a cancer support group. Yes, it goes that far. Cringe at will. Leo actually has cancer. The two bond, but soon enough, Leo realizes Wren has lied about her diagnosis. Leo doesn’t offer much in the way of empathy when Wren confesses how she got herself in this mess, even though there’s a more than a hint of a spark between then. In terms of story, all this works, but the execution doesn’t always hit great creative peaks, making Sick Girl enjoyable but never outrageously funny in the vein of Bridesmaids.
Stars Fuel This Female-Driven Comedy
Sick Girl flies high enough thanks to the cast. This is a female-driven comedy, and these ladies are in fine form even when the material they’re given to work with stumbles occasionally. Nina Dobrev continues to prove herself as somebody who can headline a project. Her timing is on the mark and infuses Wren with a nice balance of angst, vulnerability, and humanity that viewers can relate to.
Hayley Magnus steals scenes as Jill, part of Wren’s clan here. Audiences will appreciate her knack for comedy and the situations she’s been given to move through. Wendi McLendon-Covey and Stephanie Koenig are fine emotional anchors throughout and while it’s wonderful to see Sherry Cola here, who previously delighted in Joy Ride, Claws, and Good Trouble, she’s not given enough to do for her superior comedic talent. It seems like a throwaway role.
Related: 15 Best Women-Led Comedies, Ranked
Wren’s parents, played by Wendi McLendon-Covey and Dan Bakkedahl, hit all the right marks, even though we’ve seen these kinds of characters in countless movies before. Still, they do the trick. It would have been nice to have Brandon Mychal Smith do more here, too, however this is Nina Dobrev’s time to shine, so best to let the spotlight remain on her.
It’s hard not to like Sick Girl, but it’s challenging to really love it either. Overall, the experience is one we’ve had before — a raunchy R-rated comedy that hits some established beats. Still, it never soars. Like Wren, there’s always an ache for more. When a crowdfunding campaign enters the storyline, surely Wren must come clean. Judge for yourself how the filmmaker moves through and on the other side of that. Jennifer Cram may not nab the best reviews for Sick Girl, but the filmmaker will land enough good ones to keep her working. You sense there’s more fun to be had with this interesting and offbeat creator.
Sick Girl opens in theaters, on digital, and on demand October 20. If you’re a Nina Dobrev fan, you can check out our video interview with her and Adam DeVine for Netflix’s film The Out-Laws below:
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