Trainwreck

Courtesy of Universal Pictures and Apatow Productions

Amy Schumer is on a hot streak right now. Initially famous for her sharp wit and eviscerating roasting skills, Schumer has climbed the stand-up echelons to become one of the purported "funniest women in comedy." Between her show, an upcoming HBO special, and this film, she is everywhere. Adding to the fire is her collaboration with legend Judd Apatow, to create what they deem an anti-romantic comedy.

 The film is fairly funny, and there are plenty of laughs. Schumer gives a really tragic yet hilarious performance as Amy, a men's magazine writer who is tasked with interviewing a sports physician (Hader) and getting her MS stricken father (Quinn) into assisted care. Between her fear of commitment, her daddy issues, her caustic personality, and strong sarcastic streak, she makes for an unfamiliar character. While not all of her antics seem to meld with the character we see onscreen, she always entertains. Other notable performances come from a bedazzled Tilda Swinton, a super egregious John Cena, and a Downton Abbey loving LeBron James.

 Everything that I really liked in the trailer was not in the movie. When I re-watched it, it became apparent that these scenes built their relationship, and showed a deeper connection between the main characters. Because this is a Judd Apatow film it's far too long, and between trying to keep a cohesive story and editing out filler, this film lost a lot of its charm and chemistry between its two leads. I think that a lot of Schumer's original script was left unused and in her collaboration with Apatow, his influence was better seen onscreen than hers. While I still feel that there were a lot of laughs, and there’s Apatow's patented balance between the realities of life and the travesties of being incomplete, these positives are only scattered between ill-fitting scenes that make up the story's skeleton. Hopefully Schumer keeps up her momentum and continues making films with female characters that brave the waters to show their true colors.