2020 / 77m - USA
Comedy, Drama
1.5*/5.0*
Shiva Baby poster

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March 10, 2022

1.5*/5.0*

Like its faraway cousin Uncut Gems, Shiva Baby makes a real effort to be as nerve wrecking as possible. And just like Uncut Gems, it fails horribly. It leans way too hard on Jewish shatter, the somewhat aggravating soundtrack simply wasn't effective enough to pull all the weight.

Danielle doesn't really fit in with her family, so she makes up stories to impress them. When she goes to a Jewish funeral she bumps into the guy she's screwing for money, who is there with his wife and kid. If that wasn't stressfull enough, her old girlfriend is there too, and everybody wants to know how she's doing.

Shiva Baby tries to be tense and uncomfortable, but its attempts are just too weak. The comedy never crosses the line, the characters aren't quite as edgy as they are made out to be, the soundtrack is underwhelming, and the single setting is dull. It pales in comparison to films like Happiness or even American Beauty, pretty disappointing.