“Vengeance” (2022) starring B.J. Novak / Z-View

Vengeance (2022)

Director:  B.J. Novak

Writer:  B.J. Novak

Stars:  B.J. Novak, Boyd Holbrook, Ashton Kutcher, Louanne Stephens, John Mayer, Clint Obenchain, Rio Alexander, Sarah Minnich and Ben Whitehair

Tagline:  Find the story before it finds you

The Plot…

Late one night, Ben Manalowitz (Novak) receives a call. Ben’s girlfriend, Abby has died.  As Ty (Holbrook) explains his sister died of a drug overdose, Ben struggles to remember Abby.  Just as it comes to Ben that Abby was a one-night stand months ago, Ty invites him to her funeral.  Ben tries to get out of going but Ty insists.

When Ben arrives to attend the funeral of a girl he barely remembers, he learns that Abby told everyone that she and Ben were in a serious relationship!  Ty informs Ben that he believes Abby was murdered. He and Ben will search out the killer(s) and get vengeance for her death.  Ben doesn’t think Abby was murdered, but believes that Ty’s search for the killers could mean ratings for Ben’s podcast.  He agrees to stick around and assist with the investigation.  Ben begins interviewing people about Abby’s death… he’s a fish out of water, but the deeper he gets, the more he begins to believe Abby may have been murdered.  If that’s the case, he could be next.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

Ben is a New York City boy deep in the heart of Texas.  He barely remembers the woman that he was supposed to marry. Kudos to B.J. Novak for coming up with an interesting plot with tons of comedic opportunities.  The movie is well cast.  I was surprised in a good way by Ashton Kutcher’s performance.

Vengeance plays like a comedy and has plenty of laughs until it doesn’t.  There’s an unexpected 180 near the end that just didn’t work for me.  Your mileage may vary.

Vengeance earns 2 of 5 stars.