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One Star Classics

Handsome: A Netflix Mystery Movie

/ Alleged Comedy

Handsome: A Netflix Mystery Movie cover

I mostly know Jeff Garlin from Curb Your Enthusiasm and Arrested Development, though I believe it was This American Life where I was told he is a «comedian’s comedian». I can see that; the guy has one hell of a comedic presence.

How then, does a movie he co-writes, directs, and star in fare? I suppose it depends on your point of view…

Handsome is not a movie for everyone. It’s a noir-ish murder mystery, not particularly well written or directed. Granted, it’s not a shocker to see a great comedian unable to carry over their craft to a broader medium—Norm Macdonald has repeatedly proven that—but my hopes were high.

It does kind of work for me. Kind of. Because there is a funny backbone here, and the cast is great.

Co-starring Natasha Lyonne — mentioned on this site for her turn in Madhouse — and Amy Sedaris, you’re pretty much guaranteed to get some on-screen shenanigans. But it is Steven Weber who takes it all home.1 Playing a narcissistic actor who (revealed in the first scene) is the killer, he manages to ham it up so even the biggest hater will get a few chuckles out of it.

That aside, if you don’t like Garlin’s brand of humor, you probably won’t get much more to find in Handsome. It is in no way a great, or even particularly good, movie. You subjectively can get some entertainment out of it, if you like this kind of thing, the Garlin-esque type humor. Otherwise, you probably will be bored.

A sequel is being hinted at, and I assume Netflix—yes, it’s a Netflix exclusive—will go for it, should enough people watch the thing. It’s not a high budget affair, and they did, after all, sign another four movie deal with Adam Sandler. The bar isn’t set particularly high.

I laughed at/with Handsome, and I’m pretty sure any Curb fan will enjoy the film, too.

1 Per usual!

By Remi,

Letterboxd summary: LA homicide detective Gene Handsome's knack for solving mysteries is matched only by his inability to make sense of his own problems.


Ratings from around the web

Icon Site Score
One Star Classics logo One Star Classics 3/6
Letterboxd logo Letterboxd 2.4/5
IMDb logo IMDb 5.2/10
One Star Classics logo Classicmeter™ 50%

Trailer