Another Simple Favor Review
A new favor seven years in the making
WARNING: THIS ARTICLE MAY CONTAIN Spoilers from the amazon prime Video film as well as the 2018 movie, A Simple Favor. It may also discuss adult themes and languages used from the movie. CONSIDER WHEN AND WHERE IT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE TO READ THIS PIECE. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees and support our channel by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Because murder and mysteries always go well with weddings
It’s a bit strange, but apparently becoming more common in Hollywood to see a sequel film debut more than half a decade after the original movie hit theaters. Actually these second movies don’t even make it to theaters as the new form of “direct-to-VHS” is now “streaming on demand.” Back in 2018, a surprising little hit by Bridesmaid director Paul Feig, brought the lovable and bubbly Anna Kendrick together with the femme fatale persona that only Blake Lively could pull off in A Simple Favor; which nearly grossed five times its budget at the box office.
The black comedy was apparently successful enough to garner a sequel as Another Simple Favor was released worldwide exclusively on Amazon Prime Video on May 1, 2025, nearly 7 years after the first film came out. That was pre-Covid lockdown where people actually went to movie theaters for anyone historians out there. It was a completely different world in cinema back then. The full cast is back for a bigger and more convoluted mystery as the frenemies head to Italy for a wedding. Does Another Simple Favor still harness enough of the Gone Girl-vibes that made the first film a surprising winner or is this a twisted failed twin?
A Wedding Reunion
A lot has changed in the five years since she put her best friend in jail for resident mom-vlogger turned internet sleuth detective, Stephanie Smothers (Kendrick). Rising to fame from the book she wrote about her relationship with bestie Emily Nelson (Lively) from the first film, she now finds herself questioning her new career after getting herself into a regrettable situation while attempting to solve a mystery for clout. With tanking book sales and in need of revival of sorts, as if called by fate, Emily returns to blackmail her frenemy to serve as her Maid of Honor for her upcoming wedding.
To complicate matters, Emily and Stephanie’s shared romantic partner from the first film, Sean (Henry Golding), reluctantly attends the event which is in reality a secret peace pact between mafia families as Emily’s new fiance, Dante (Michele Morrone) is the head of a powerful family. It’s all high risk, multi-facet back dealings, and deprecating humor in this second rowdy adventure between Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick.
Lively and Kendrick reprise their roles as Emily and Stephanie
When it comes to leading casts, I do have to say I really enjoyed the pairing of Lively and Kendrick. Their dynamic is a bit different than the first film as the plot demands it based on the events that happened in the introductory movie, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less bantery and enjoyable. They have impeccable on-screen chemistry playing two people who you truly can believe should not be in the same room as one another. Anna Kendrick continues to weave through this amazingly thin line of being a crafty mastermind, and an innocent sweetheart. It’s not easy to pull this off and her casting was perfect for Stephanie. There was a clear power dynamic in the first film that was chipped away throughout the plot. The passive Stephanie gradually became a more resounding voice that could stand on equal footing with the no-nonsense Emily. This newer version of Stephanie stands on completely equal grounds as Emily here in the sequel.
Lively on the other hand has always been an underrated actress in my opinion. She doesn’t get the respect she probably should due to a variety of reasons, but she excels as a femme fatale character. The plot in A Simple Favor was somewhat grounded for most of the film, with only a slightly unfathomable plot point to drive the narrative over the craziness factor. Another Simple Favor takes the ludicrous storyline mechanics through the roof as the level of reality that is believable for a story that started out pretty down to earth just completely collapses.
That’s also ironically what makes Lively’s showcase here so great. She pulls off these variant personas of one character’s interaction with each another as if she is talking with alternate reality versions of herself. It’s cringy, yet mesmerizing to see her interact with herself in scenes. Without going too much into spoiler details, the sequel doubles down on the first film’s big shocking twist and all of this relies heavily of Lively’s acting chops. They chose well bringing her for the gigs.
Amazon’s Jackpot Review
Purging California through the LotteryHumor Me
And as with most Paul Feig directed films, the humor that provides the skeleton to the movie is not for everyone. This isn’t a laugh-out-loud type of comedy, but through the psychological buildup based around the mystery of the surrounding plot that we as audiences are also trying to figure out in real time, I did let out the occasional chuckle from the dark results of the reveals. I do give the filmmakers credit for going to certain themes and revelations that I honestly never thought would be used as jokes again in modern blockbuster-type films. While this isn’t an Avengers-level ordeal, an Amazon Prime release is still a big deal with the star power behind this script. They did this with the first film as well, but I guess I should have expected the shocking twist here as it was a poetic callback to that plot point back in 2018.
Most of the answers to the mysteries in this sequel were a bit out there. That’s not to say they were good, but it did feel like the collective body that put this sequel together went “how cringeworthy can we take this joke” and wrapped it all together and kept spamming it throughout the 120 minute run time. I do believe the awkward charm that made the first film work was strangely absent the second time around. Like I said early, some of that was bound to happen due to the character development Stephanie and Emily were forced to work with from the first film’s events and this sequel suffers from it. Some of what made the original so entertaining was the power dynamic that Emily held over Stephanie. It just doesn’t feel as comedic or even cute at times when Stephanie is Emily’s equal in being conniving.
A Better Favor?
The deaths, the quirky ending, the resolutions for the characters, and ultimately the interactions within this world all felt cartoonish now in Another Simple Favor. On the other hand, A Simple Favor merely felt as if it was a satirical commentary about suburban mom life. Somewhere in between the 7 years it took to get this sequel out to Amazon, the concept in which made the first film launch off the ground evolved to over the top levels. Whether it was for better or worse will likely depend on the type of humor and mystery you the viewer typically find intriguing. For me, Another Simple Favor was still an entertaining Friday night flick, but likely not something I would recommend off the top of my head. That’s somewhat of a different mentality I had from the previous film, in which if someone asked me for a recommendation to a less intense film with Gone Girl-vibes, I would confidently give A Simple Favor a rub.
Alex
Caught in between the conundrum of his fascination with retro and the future, Alex has a very unique taste in technology. Never one to follow trends like his millennial peers yet constantly desiring to get ahead of the curve, he sees technology like he does his other love: comic books. Always looking for the best value or a hidden gem, his collector mindset reflects on some of his favorite gadgets: the Moto X (2015), HTC U11 and the Google Pixelbook. If there’s a good tech deal out there, Alex is on the hunt!