Hulu Summary:
When a man is offered a million dollars to play a game in which hunters try to kill him, he thinks he has found the perfect loophole: they can only attack when he’s alone. His only problem is that none of his friends or family believe the game is real.
FYA Summary:
Tommy isn’t really living, he’s just going through the motions. When he’s given the chance to win a million dollars by staying alive for a month—with people hunting him the entire time—he figures, “why the heck not?” It’s not until he needs someone to stick by his side 24/7/30 and no one in his life is willing that he realizes that making it through the month is going to be a lot harder than he expected.
When he meets up with another player, a woman named Maddy who seems to be as aimless as he is, he thinks he’s found a way to make it through. But can he survive both Maddy and the people hunting him?
Familiar Faces:
Jake Johnson as Tommy and Anna Kendrick as Maddy
I really adore Johnson’s low-key, understated humor, and he brings all of his Nick Miller/Peter B. Parker charm to the role of Tommy. He’s the kind of guy who’s unexpectedly charming and surprisingly sexy, even while being a bit of an idiot, and Jake pulls that off so well.
Maddy is a pretty typical Anna Kendrick role. She’s quirky, snarky, and she hits it off with Tommy right away, thanks in part to both of them having a weird sense of humor. Kendrick and Johnson have pretty good chemistry, thankfully; their characters spend a lot of time together, without anyone else.
Andy Samberg as Andy Samberg
Samberg plays himself in this movie, in a sort of meta way. He’s not comedic or goofy; he’s just a regular (celebrity) guy who’s getting paid to do a weird, possibly illegal, job. It honestly made me wonder if Samberg was hard up for money; the role felt all too real.
Eduardo Franco as P.A. Ninja
I only know Franco from his role as the stoner pizza dude Argyle in Stranger Things, so he’s not exactly a familiar face. But his role was probably the best (and the weirdest?) of the whole movie, so I had to include him here. (I can’t tell you what was so great about it without ruining a hilarious part of the film, so you’re just going to have to trust me here.)
Couch-Sharing Capability: First Date Friendly
There’s something about this strange, understated movie that feels like it would be perfect to watch on a first date with someone you don’t know all that well. The humor would help break the ice, and the plot would be great to chat about afterward.
Recommended Level of Inebriation: Socially Buzzed
Self Reliance isn’t a movie that you need to pay 100% attention to, but it’s also not a movie during which you should get completely sloshed It’s not a deep film, and it’s not a completely original one, either, but it’s a good time to have when you’re feeling like being entertained in a more gentle/understated kind of way.
Use of Your Streaming Subscription: Show Your Support
It can be hard to justify having numerous streaming services, especially when you don’t really utilize all that they have to offer. I likely wouldn’t have Hulu were it not for the Diseny+ bundle, but I’m glad I have it currently because I got to watch this movie. If you’re looking for a movie that doesn’t take too much brain power but will also make you smile, and you have Hulu, definitely check this one out. If only to show support for Johnson; he deserves any success he can get. (I mean, he’s a good egg!)
