There is a reason Am I OK? had to wait two long years since its Sundance premiere in 2022. It’s a relatively vain turn-of-the-century character study that summarizes an intimate issue, resolving everything within 90 minutes or less. That’s a shame because the film could have used an extra 30 minutes to explore three endearing performances that are so much better than the material.
The problem is not the script. It’s the fact that Tig Notaro, a signature comedian of her generation, fails to generate the type of comedy that makes her so popular in Am I OK?. The final result has heart, and the chemistry between the two characters is off the charts. Yet, that’s used as a plot device to move the story along instead of creating something more meaningful.
Max’s Am I OK? Review and Synopsis
The story follows Lucy (Dakota Johnson), a woman in her early thirties who is about to come to grips with her sexuality. After dating men for years and stringing along an adoring man named Ben (Search Party’s Whitmer Thomas), Lucy is finally ready to accept what she has known for some time—she likes women. She has known it for years but has been too afraid to admit it out loud.
It’s a vulnerable time for Lucy. It doesn’t help that her best friend, Jane (House of the Dragon’s Sonoya Mizuno), is leaving for a new job in London after a promotion from her boss (Sean Hayes). After Lucy comes out to Jane about her sexuality, Jane encourages Lucy to act upon the chemistry with a coworker, the free-spirited Brittany (Kiersey Clemons).
Am I OK? Has Three Endearing Performances
Am I OK? was directed by Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne, working with a script from Lauren Pomerantz (Me, Myself, & I). The filmmakers’ ambitions are hamstrung by forced humor and a weak finale that tries to be crowd-pleasing and feel-good but comes across as saccharine at best. When there is a brief moment of nonsensical humor, it’s woefully out of place.
The script fails to explore sexuality, love, and friendship in any meaningful way, remaining only in shallow, vain, millennial waters. Johnson has terrific chemistry with The Flash’s Clemons — their scenes together soar. For a moment, you think Notaro and Allynne have really found something here. However, the storyline is moved to the side for a buddy comedy that’s forced and inauthentic.
Is Max’s Am I OK? Worth Watching?
Am I OK? is only worth watching if you are a fan of Dakota Johnson, who is refreshingly vulnerable in the role. However, if you are a fan of comedian Tig Notaro, her directorial debut will most likely leave you with an underwhelming feeling of disappointment. The comedy the film strives for is far too distant in its observations and lacks the personal touch many admire in Notaro’s comedic gifts.
Why didn’t Notaro write her own script? Indeed, her life experience and comedic style would have gelled better onscreen in tone and pace. While Clemons’ character does not necessarily have to be more meaningful to Lucy, the moment should be seminal. Instead, it is treated as filler, and we never really get to know Dakota Johnson’s Lucy as a person or her motivation.
Am I OK? treats the moment of coming out of the closet as flippant and as easy as turning on and off a light switch.
You can stream the new film Am I OK? on Max this Thursday.
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