Genre: Comedy
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 90 minutes
Director: Jeff Baena
Cast: Alison Brie, Kate Micucci, Dave Franco, Aubrey Plaza and John C. Reilly
Synopsis
A young servant fleeing from his master takes refuge at a convent full of emotionally unstable nuns in the Middle Ages. Introduced as a deaf blind man, he must fight to hold his cover as the nuns try to resist temptation.
‘One of you sluts thinks he’s quite the jester!’
Review
Aubrey Plaza, Alison Brie and Kate Micucci star as sisters Fernanda, Alessandra and Genevra, living in 14th century Italy God-fearing nuns at first but actually terribly jaded and always ready to exhibit their frustrations, including those of sexual nature. Worth noting they speak English with American accent and use ‘fuck’ like it’s a comma.
When Dave Franco’s Massetto, a handsome deaf-mute seeks refuge at their convent, one by one the sisters give in to the temptation. Not that they were fighting it too hard.
The film’s one-sided and simplistic characterisation of the two sexes – independent, strong-minded women and push-tools men – doesn’t offer enough material to work with for 90 minutes of the film.
Little Hours feels like a selection of Saturday Night Live sketches – and could easily go on to have a separate life as such. Once you get used to the concept, what inadvertently happens very early on, the film offers a couple of chuckles here and there, and that’s it.
These are mostly thanks to Fred Armisen’s Bishop Bartolomeo and Massetto’s old masters played with genius restraint by Nick Offerman and Lauren Weedman. They don’t do half-measures, rather go bonkers all the way.
Verdict
Based on one of Boccaccio’s stories from Decameron, Little Hours proves that an original idea and star-studded cast does not necessarily equals success as this is all we will remember – Alison Brie and Aubrey Plaza’s swearing and consumed with lust nuns, talking American in 14th century Italy.
