One Of Them Days (2025)

Sometimes you're in the mood for something light and enjoyable, and that can be one of those times when you find it most difficult to pick from the recent selection of movies available to you. Thankfully, I decided to finally make some time for One Of Them Days, and it ended up being a great choice. This is very funny stuff, and both leads (Keke Palmer and SZA) work so well together that I immediately want them paired up in another dozen movies with this tone.

Dreux (Palmer) and Alyssa (SZA) are best friends. They're also roommates. They also seem to be at very different points in life, with Dreux hoping to move up the career ladder while Alyssa gets to enjoy spending a lot of her time creating art. Alyssa also spends a lot of her time with her selfish and freeloading man, Keshawn (Joshua David Neal). Keshawn, in turn, causing a big problem when he spends a lot of money that isn't his. It's the rent money that Dreux and Alyssa need to pay their landlord by the end of the day. 

A very standard premise familiar to comedy fans - two best buds racing against the clock to find a solution to one or two major problems - One Of Them Days manages to be as entertaining as it is because of everyone involved all working on the same wavelength. This may be the debut feature of director Lawrence Lamont, as well as writer Syreeta Singleton, but there's a confidence here, perhaps helped by assembling such a consistently brilliant cast. Individual set-pieces are fun and memorable, the whole thing feels as if it has actually been structured with some care (as opposed to certain comedies that feel planned around lengthy improv sessions), and there's a real comfort and warmth in knowing how a number of plot resolutions will surely fall into place by the time the end credits roll. 

I have been a fan of Palmer for some time now, but I had somehow never remembered how funny she could be, despite her main role in the brilliant, hilarious, and short-lived, Scream Queens TV show. SZA is, as far as I'm aware, not known for her acting. I couldn't sing you any of her tunes, but music has been her main artistic endeavour for a number of years. You wouldn't know that this was her film acting debut, considering how easily she lights up the screen, and how well she and Palmer spark off one another. Neal is very funny, playing one of the biggest douchebag boyfriends I've seen in cinema for a while, and the rest of the cast is stuffed with a variety of people doing great work. Katt Williams is a lot of fun as Lucky, someone trying to warn our leads about the dangers of a payday loan. Maude Apatow is enjoyable as Bethany, a young woman who moves into the apartment complex and hopes to be friends with her new neighbours, blissfully unaware of the sticky situation that they're in. Patrick Cage is a handsome man worryingly named "Maniac", which causes Palmer's character to keep trying to resist her attraction to him. Keyla Monterroso Mejia is a smug and callous moneylender, Rizi Timane is the impatient landlord, Amin Joseph is a dangerous figure who shouldn't be crossed (adding to the whole mess when Dreux and Alyssa end up on his radar), and Aziza Scott is the formidable and fiery Berniece.

Everything is bright and busy, even as we move into evening time and closer to that deadline, thanks to the cinematography from Ava Berkofsky, there's a wonderful score from Chanda Dancy, and kudos to costume designer Kairo Courts for some of the more memorable wardrobe choices. Nobody lets the team down though, and it's that consistent attention to detail, as well as brilliant development of everything that feeds into the stream of quality gags, that makes this such an entertaining time.

If it wasn't for the fact that I could see a few of the "punchlines" coming a mile away, this would have been something I considered perfect. As it is, I'll drop one point from my rating. No more though. One Of Them Days is one of them films I will go back to again and again when I want to stay in a good mood for the duration of the runtime.

9/10

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The King Of Staten Island (2020)

Pete Davidson, in case you are unaware of him, has established a persona of being a lovable asshole. He's been doing some fun work on SNL, and is almost equally well-known for being someone who lost his firefighter father when he was only a young boy (during the work to rescue people trapped in the rubble of the attack on the Twin Towers on September 11th).

In The King Of Staten Island, which Davidson co-wrote with Dave Sirus and director Judd Apatow, he plays Scott, a young man who has never really managed to get over the fact that his firefighter father died in the line of duty when he was a young boy. He acts like it doesn't bother him, most of the time, but it clearly does. And it bothers him even more to see his mother (Marisa Tomei) become involved with another firefighter (Bill Burr). Will this affect his desire to be an inconsistent tattoo artist, get stoned, and maintain a far-too-casual relationship with the lovely Kelsey (Bel Powley)?

A lot of how you feel about The King Of Staten Island will depend on two factors. First, how you feel about Davidson. I get that his schtick isn't for everyone, but he has a nice line in self-deprecation mixed in with his attempts to get a gasp or laugh from people. Second, how you feel about Apatow movies. Yes, this runs for just over two hours. Of course. At least Stephen King used to remember how to churn out slim and exciting stories. Apatow has needed an editor on every one of his comedy features. Having said that, The King Of Staten Island doesn't feel overlong, thanks to the way it is structured. It has four main acts, and each one develops nicely from the one preceding it.

The central performances are great, and Davidson's character works with everyone that he's alongside. He's a sweet son used to pushing his luck with his mother, he's constantly antagonistic towards Burr's character, he cares for a girl he is also scared to commit to, and he goofs around with friends who allow him to stay comfortably in his state of arrested development. He also works well with the two youngest main cast members, Luke David Blumm and Alexis Rae Forlenza, maintaining that cool and messed-up older brother vibe he gave off in Big Time Adolescence. It's very much a two-way street though, with Davidson surrounded by top talent. As well as everyone mentioned, who are all on absolutely great form, you get some nice little turns from Steve Buscemi, Pamela Adlon, Maude Apatow, Ricky Velez, Lou Wilson, and Moises Arias.

There aren't any major set-pieces here, nothing that stands out as the easiest scene to use in selling the film, and some may want more laughs from it, but The King Of Staten Island is one of the best comedies I've seen in the past couple of years. And it also turns into something surprisingly sweet without feeling untrue to the nature of the central characters.

9/10

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