Man candy at midnight

Evident by the long lines and crowded theatres at Macon’s AmStar 16, Mercer University students love Midnight Movie. What other event provides $2 movies—including day-of releases?

Over winter break, I saw quite a few movies, and used the previews for those movies to gauge what I’d want to see in the next few months. When the choices for Midnight Movie where finally posted, I had quite a dilemma.

There were a few movies that I wanted to see (sadly “Wolf of Wall Street” was not on the final list) and I waffled on my decision even as I entered the theatre. “That Awkward Moment” had looked promising in previews, and as someone who has a love for romantic comedies, I ultimately considered this a must see for me.

I got to the theater early, stood in line for my ticket, and then stood in line again just to get into the theater. There were quite a few people who had decided to attend the movie for its opening night, and once the audience members from the previous film were gone, Mercer students flooded the small theater.

Despite my concern about the student-seat ratio, the theater was more than enough to handle the large group. I was full of excitement.

Despite my anticipation, however, the movie wasn’t stunning. But it was not horrible either. If you haven’t seen the movie, the following paragraphs contain spoilers, so consider yourself warned.

Most people had come for the man candy, consisting of the film’s three co-stars Zac Efron, Miles Teller and Michael B. Jordan. I’m not a huge Efron fan, but after watching one of his previous romantic comedies, “17 Again,” I’ve been willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

The storyline follows the three males, all living in New York, as they navigate the waters of romance and brotherhood.

Jordan’s character, Mikey, is a married doctor who, after discovering that his wife was cheating on him, wants a divorce. Mikey’s friends make a vow that they’ll remain single with him to show their support. They soon find, however, it’s not as simple as they think.

Efron’s character, Jason, meets a girl (Ellie, played by Imogen Poots) at a club that the men frequent and takes her home. After mistaking her for a hooker, he leaves her and is surprised to find her at his work within the next week.

He begs her to give him a second chance, and with much reluctance, she does. Finding that he likes her, Jason’s friends quickly find that he’s breaking the vow.

He is not the only one, however, as Miles’ character, Daniel, also develops a new romance with his former wingwoman and best friend (Chelsea, played by Mackenzie Davis). The two spend a night in bed together. And then another. And another.

Meanwhile, Mikey has been trying to patch his marriage back up, unbeknownst to his friends. Despite his hardest efforts, he is unsuccessful, and the film’s climax ends with a big blow-up fight.

But, of course, it wouldn’t be a comedy if they all didn’t get back together in the end. The movie was simultaneously funny, emotional and deep.

Though there was a sense of dissatisfaction from not delving fully into the problems that are clearly plaguing the three men, overall “That Awkward Moment” was a fairly entertaining movie. I give the movie a B+.