That Awkward Moment should have been called That Wasted Potential. It takes some great talent and places them in a cliché driven film; filled with such an abundance of overused romance-comedy situations that a slightly genre savvy viewer could call every moment twenty scenes before they happen. I will however give some credit to its title; That Awkward Moment can definitely get awkward at times (though not in the way it intended).
The story goes that three male friends decide to make a pact to enjoy the single life after one of them gets a divorce. Apparently the pact is also a bet for them to stay single…maybe?…I’m not really sure about this part; they keep going back and forth on “It’s a bet” to “It’s not a bet; its fine to start dating.” Breaking the promise backfires (maybe) when all three inevitably find someone they want to date; leading to some run of the mill lying where they say it means nothing until the big reveal where everyone finds out and have a big fight scene despite the fact they were all dating and blah blah blah, formula formula, cliché cliché, they all make up, end up with their respective ladies, and live happily ever after, the end!
The film’s big three stars are Zac Efron as our main protagonist Jason, Miles Teller as Daniel…who was just recently in The Spectacular Now (my favorite romance of 2013 that also won Miles a jury prize for dramatic acting) and I guess decided That Awkward Moment to be the next big step...and lastl-OH NO! Noo No No…(sigh) and lastly Michael B. Jordan as Mikey, who if you recall starred in my favorite film of 2013, Fruitvale Station; giving one heck of a wonderful performance as tragic real life victim Oscar Grant…and is now starring in That Awkward Moment, which by the way is slowly becoming more and more of an appropriate name (or maybe it should have been called That Awkward Moment of Wasted Potential).
Alright, maybe I'm giving That Awkward Moment more flack than it deserves; as it’s not awful per se, just a huge waste. While there’s a possibility the film used every cliché known to create its story, to its credit it’s not an unpleasant one. The friendly atmosphere is by no means thanks to the plot or director, by instead thanks to the cast. Both actors and actresses put full effort into their roles, coming across as likable despite poor character motivation. Any comedy that’s in this film comes from the performers’ skill at acting. One scene that made me laugh (not once, but twice) involves Jason and Daniel taking Mikey out to a club shortly after his divorce. The scene’s basically Mikey looking uncomfortable to be back in the dating scene, yet worked for me not because of the film’s presentation, but from how confused and out of place Mikey looks to be there. Using his character, Jordan creates the necessary atmosphere where the film fails to do so. In fact all three stars do their best with reconstructing roles so as not to come off despicable; a commendable act considering the film’s utter determination to change that around.
The cast is pretty much the only source of comedy for the entire film’s run. One or more of the guys has a scene where a gag happens (possibly with a female interest); they talk about it or do something awkward, and then move on to the next scene (repeating the cycle). It’s simply a string of events where stuff happens; sometimes it’s funny or charming (thanks to our male leads), and other times it’s dull and boring. And yet the entire film is always predictable; nothing new is brought to the table, everything has been done before. I was able to call every moment right up to the big damn emotional speech where they win back their ladies. I do believe That Awkward Moment had potential to be good; with such a good cast along with a smarter plot and better direction, it could have been worth seeing. Unfortunately what we got is what we’re stuck with for now. That Awkward Moment is neither abysmal nor despicable; it is however boring, cliché ridden, and a colossal waste of good talent.
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