Those who have attended a Shabbat dinner — which occurs on Friday and kicks off the Jewish Sabbath — know that the traditional greeting is “good Shabbos.” The ensemble comedy “Bad Shabbos” telegraphs its silliness right from the title.
Directed by Daniel Robbins, the movie takes place over a disastrous dinner on the Upper West Side, where David (Jon Bass) and Meg (Meghan Leathers) — a newly engaged Jew and gentile — plan to introduce their parents for the first time. But before they can start, a disturbing prank by David’s brother, Adam (Theo Taplitz), goes awry, causing an emergency that the family must hide from the Midwestern in-laws. The crisis involves a body and a ticking clock, as well as a zany, meddlesome doorman (Method Man, always welcome) added for good measure.
“Bad Shabbos” overflows with the kvetching, nagging and nit-picking endemic to the Jewish movie canon. It also contains an overused trope: the domineering Jewish mother harboring animus toward her son’s shiksa fiancée. Despite Meg’s efforts to connect, Ellen (Kyra Sedgwick) repeatedly slights her future daughter-in-law. Ellen’s flat sitcom character finds a match in some of the movie’s aesthetic choices, like the framing and the pizzicato strings making up its score.
These style elements can feel grating. But as the jokes continue to land and the wine continues to flow, you grow used to the tone. This is, after all, a situational comedy, in which the laughs spring from reaction shots and line deliveries. Luckily, the actors prove up to the task.
Bad Shabbos
Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 24 minutes. In theaters.
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