Recently, I watched a movie called Bad Words (2013).  In my review, I discussed the language in it and how awful it is.  Specifically, I pointed out how people use swear words as a verbal crutch when they can think of nothing else to say.  They do not have to be said out of anger, either.  Pick an emotional state and these days most would not bat an eye at a curse being used to express it.  This trend is continued in today’s picture, Someone Great (2019).  Aside from the verbiage, as I watched this mad tale unfold a growing sense of alienness pervaded my thoughts.  Though I live on the same planet as these people, or whatever real-life analog there is of them, their experiences are so out of phase with my own that they might as well be extra-terrestrials, or vice versa.  God help me, but in such situations I reflect on my Faith.  Then again, as a Catholic film critic, this is my default mode of analysis.  I do not care for the overwhelming majority of the activities in which you see practically all the characters engage.  And yet, I can understand that for which they are grasping and seeking.  God is the answer, my friends, not what I am about to describe.

I am not sure if anyone one in this film could be called Someone Great, but the title seems to refer to Nate Davis (LaKeith Stanfield).  He is not the protagonist, but is the boyfriend of Jenny Young (Gina Rodriguez).  Correction, make that ex-boyfriend because after a brief montage of their relationship, we meet Jenny crying to a stranger at a New York City subway stop about being dumped by Nate.  The reason for this sudden end is because she has gotten a promotion working for Rolling Stone magazine, which means that she must move to San Francisco.  It is an opportunity she cannot pass up for her career.  However, Nate does not want to leave the East Coast, nor is he interested in attempting to carry on at long distance.  The following morning, she checks in with her best friends, Blair Helms (Brittany Snow) and Erin Kennedy (DeWanda Wise).  Among the shared updates is Jenny telling them about the termination of her nine-year relationship with Nate.  She is already drinking, and is going on about a pop-up concert called Neon Classic.  Her original in to the event had been Nate, but that avenue is now closed.  Yet, she is determined to have one last epic night with her closest, longtime companions before her imminent move.  She might call it epic, but before Erin arrives at Jenny’s, Erin is predicting disaster.  Before moving on, it should be noted that as this trio lurches from one spot to another, each new setting triggers a flashback for Jenny of the time she spent with Nate.  As I am not the biggest fan of non-linear narratives, particularly when describing them, I will give you the gist of these moments now.  Conveniently, they seem to correlate with the chronology of their relationship.  It began with them meeting soon after college and quickly blossomed into love.  They even had a spot next to the fountain in Washington Square Park.  Yet, the more she progressed in her career, the more apart they drifted.  As mentioned, the thing that told Nate that it was time to move on was Jenny getting the new job on the West Coast.  All these things are addressed at various points along the way.  Since I am already out of whack with the film’s timeline, I suppose I will describe Jenny’s two best friends to you.  Blair is the uptight one, and she initially turns down Jenny’s invitation to come over for weed and sympathy.  I realize the usual word is “tea,” but that is only found in the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the marijuana they all constantly smoke.  I wish I was exaggerating.  Not to worry about Blair’s absence, though, because later Erin and Jenny drag her from her place of employment to join their debauched quest.  For Blair, this includes having to sleep with Matt Lasher (Peter Vack) in order to get the tickets for Neon Classic.  I would say this is a bigger deal than what it is since Matt used to date Jenny, but unsurprisingly she seems cool with it in the end.  Then there is Erin.  She is in an amorous relationship with a woman named Leah (Rebecca Naomi Jones) to whom Erin is afraid to make a commitment.  Because of the issues with which all three are dealing, they seek comfort in each other . . . but also alcohol and drugs.  I will not deny the genuine bond between them, but it appears that the booze and marijuana do most of the work.  With the copious amounts of illegal substances on board, they somehow manage to get dressed and make it to the concert.  While there, Jenny sees Nate.  She wants to go talk to him, but Blair and Erin try to prevent this from happening.  Angrily, Jenny sidesteps her friends and exchanges a look, and a mouthed “I love you,” with Nate before leaving with Matt.  Remarkably, she does not try to sleep with her former college crush, but instead turns to writing out a love letter to Nate that is meant to “end it.”  What happens to this missive is anyone’s guess.  I suppose we saw her scribbling simply for dramatic purposes?  At any rate, Matt is kind of enough to relay Jenny’s cryptic clue to Blair and Erin as to where they can find their friend.  They locate Jenny in Washington Square Park, dreaming about Nate taking back everything he had recently done.  Instead, Jenny wakes up to Blair and Erin, and they realize that it is time to move on with their lives.

I had to move on with Someone Great in a few places, meaning that I fast forwarded through a couple of scenes.  These were sex scenes, though (gratefully) there is no full-blown nudity in this movie.  That is about the only thing missing from the usual “R” rated material that is present.  When taken as a whole, that material constitutes a major reason for why this movie is problematic, particularly when viewed from a Catholic lens.  For every problem that these women face, there is a bottle or a joint with which to escape from it.  They use these substances like candy, but the main purpose, especially for Jenny, is so that she does not have to deal with her sadness.  It is actually Erin, however, that better articulates her issues.  It does not come with any flowery language.  She simply says that she is scared.  Movies like this one do an excellent job of highlighting just how broken is society, despite all of our supposed achievements and advancements, and these characters are the evidence.  Actually, there is a beautiful metaphor used in the film for this when Jenny says that she is not just broken, but shattered.  Erin also has an excellent answer for this, saying that she is blessed to be in this condition.  I know there is not meant to be a connection to Faith with her words, but it is God’s truth.  God loves us no matter how many pieces into which we break due to life’s trauma.  He has known all the pain that we will ever know, and to a greater degree.  The problem for many is that Faith is not quick enough.  Why sit with our problems and bring them to God and let the Holy Spirit mend more completely when we can have the quick fix of a temporary high?  Yet, once we come down, our issues remain . . . as does God.  He never leaves our side, and He never will.  Instead of one outrageous night, does it not make more sense to take that which ails us to God for as long as it takes?  I agree that sometimes the bad that happens to us is beyond us, seemingly too big to contemplate.  God is bigger, and bigger still than we can imagine.

I might have been more okay with Someone Great if not for the near constant drug use, drinking, or having/talking about sex.  There is something honest hidden under many layers of awful here, and the characters only want to add more awful to it rather than solving their problems.  These are the kinds of people for which we should pray, which is a great thing to do instead of watching this movie.