Netflix has been cranking out films left and right. With over 80 set to release this year alone (and almost 30 out so far), it's possible that the quality across the board will take a hit. Set It Up is no exception.
The plot centers around Harper (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie (Glen Powell), New York assistants tired of living lives in their boss' revolving door. Together they hatch a plan to couple their employers (played by Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs), so they can finally attend to personal matters. Charlie wants time to date his vapid girlfriend, Suze (Joan Smalls), while Harper hopes to finally finish the article that will bring her into the big leagues. As with most romantic comedies the result is heavy-handed and ridden with clichés.
The first hour though, has some legitimately funny banter and situational comedy. Charlie's roommate Duncan (Pete Davidson) offers some great deadpan retorts, and an incident in an elevator leads to fairly funny interplay from Creepy Tim (Tituss Burgess). Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs are probably the stars people are here for and they do a great job with solid comedic timing and general acting chops. The leads, however, falter.
Glen Powell's Charlie is a try-hard Brad Pitt-type, while Zoey Deutch does her best to channel Ellen Page in each ditzy moment. For the first hour this dichotomy works, but once the film decides to follow the clichéd emotional downturn they just don't have what it takes to make it believable.
In fact the latter half of the film understands it's leading into cliché territory, so it continues to try to rattle it with more awkward comedy, and hurried plot points. A fight in a jewelery store is eyerolling, and -as you might have guessed- there's definitely a scene where someone preaches a confession to someone standing on a balcony above them. Instead of letting the ending breathe the audience is leapt quickly through forced plot points so we can arrive at the predictable conclusion.
VERDICT Set It Up is a serviceable romantic comedy. Bingeable material, but offers little to make it worth seeking out. Don't waste a date night on this one. 2/5
June is on the horizon, but let's take a look back at the albums memorialized in May. These are my favorites from last month. Enjoy!
Honorable Mentions:
"I Have Fought Against It, But I Can’t Any Longer" - The Body
"Look, Here Comes the Dark!" - Abraham
"The Monuments of Ash & Bone" - Wolvhammer
"IV" - Grayceon
"Light Will Consume Us All" - Chrch
"Amr" - Ihsahn
"The Colony Slain" - Age of Taurus
5. "World’s Blood" - Wayfarer
I've been a fan of Wayfarer since their atmospheric 2014 debut "Children of the Iron Age". Their previous effort "Old Souls" was exceptional, and "World's Blood" continues the group's trend upwards. It's infinitely listenable with lucid shoegaze tempered with crushing riffage and battle-cry beats. Album outro "A Nation of Immigrants" deserves mention as it's one of the more emotional tracks I've heard so far this year. The album might admittedly be overly melancholy for some listener's but it hits home whenever I press play. They're a group I look forward to hearing from each and every time, and hopefully this album garner's the following they rightly deserve.
4. "You Bastard!" - Professor Black
Chris Black is inarguably the hardest working person in modern hard rock/heavy metal. Most widely known for his solo project High Spirits and the recently disbanded Dawnbringer, Black has also featured in a plethora of other acts including Aktor, MetalUSAfer, and Superchrist. "You Bastard!" is Chris' first outing under his long-assumed Professor Black moniker, and it's a straight up six song headbanger. The album stays true to the elements spearheaded in his previous works, most notably High Spirits, and while it doesn't change up the formula too much, Chris continues to prove that honest lyrics and solid instrumentals is all it takes to make a hard hitting song. Black's vocals also aren't revolutionary, but there's emotion and intensity behind each word. Overall, "You Bastard!" isn't going to shake up the foundations of rock and heavy metal, but instead it sticks to those foundations and offers the escapism lost in much of today's popular rock scene. As I said at the start, Chris is undoubtedly the hardest working individual in the genre today, and he deserves all the recognition he can get. So show it to everyone you know and play it loud for all to hear.
3. "Witch Mountain" - Witch Mountain
Witch Mountain have had an interesting few years. After the departure of vocalist Uta Plotkin after 2014's "Mobile of Angels", it seemed the band was over. Thankfully, rather than shelve the band, guitarist Rob Wrong and drummer Nathan Carson took it as a welcome opportunity to find their next voice. Then they found Kayla Dixon. Kayla almost instantly clicked with the band's style, and her crooning is indelible. The band reborn decided to name their first outing together "Witch Mountain". It continues the group's signature blend of bluesy doom featuring Rob's heatseeking guitarwork with the addition of more violent vocalwork from Dixon; whose growls infect "Burn You Down". The album could have used another song or two since it consists of five tracks, including a cover of Spirit's "Mechanical World" and the short escapist track "Hellfire", but it's enough to show that Witch Mountain are back, and better than ever.
2. "Queen of Time" - Amorphis
Amorphis has been producing top notch melodic death metal since their inception in 1990. Over their nearly 30 year career the quality only dipped a bit with 2003's "Far From the Sun". Since then and the induction of Tomi Joutsen, the group has been hitting higher and higher notes. 2015 saw the release of "Under the Red Sun", which saw it's name slapped across plenty of best of the year lists, and was arguably the band's best album to date. Not only has "Queen of Time" matched the expectations set by this previous album, but completely blown them away. It's a triumph of an album featuring intricate musicianship, composition, and a perfect, simply perfect, vocal performance by Joutsen. Amorphis continue to outdo themselves, and one wonders what their 30th year will bring.
1. "Geometria" - Thy Catafalque
Tamas Katai is Thy Catafalque. On the new album "Geometria", Katai integrates a substantial variety of genres. It's actually nearly impossible to name them all with elements of folk/jazz/electronica/pop/crust/classical, and sprinkled within is always the black metal foundations. The opening track "Hajnali csillag" intros with a psychedelic and ambient soundscape, and slowly transitions to folk-infused metal. This track is followed by the scorcher "Szamojéd freskó" demanding the listener respect the ebb and flow of Thy Catafalque's style. "Tenger, tenger" is the standout track for me with Misha Doumnov's excruciatingly emotional violin work. It's a fantastic track, which might be a little straightforward given the rest of the proceedings, but there's still a lot of texture in the instrumentation and vocal work, and I find myself returning to it again and again.
As we head into May, let's take a listen back at the shower of solid soundscapes April allotted us. Below are my favorites from this past month. Enjoy!
Honorable Mention: "Hugsjá" - Ivar Bjørnson & Einar Selvik
In 2016, the duo of Ivar Bjørnson (Enslaved) & Einar Selvik (Wardruna) released, "Skuggsjá"; an incredible compilation of folk and extreme metal. Their followup "Hugsjá" is a stripped down album where choral and acoustic elements take center-stage. The album maintains the adventurous, story-driven lyrics and the instrumentation provides gallant background to the seafaring themes. If you happen to have a galleon, then this is your soundtrack.
Honorable Mention: "Tid" - Fedrespor
Fans of Heilung, Forndom, or other Scandanavian groups going for organic folk need to listen to this immediately.
5. "The Sciences" - Sleep
Sleep released this LP out of nowhere on the gospel 4/20. It's been roughly 20 years since, "Dopesmoker", graced grassy knolls and these guys still know how to impress with a piece of sci-fi stoner perfection. Below is one aptly titled track from the album.
4. "East of Sun" - Gatekeeper
Epic power metal performed exquisitely.
3. "Stars Swept into the Sea" - Unreqvited
A gorgeous synthesis of atmospheric black metal with symphonic and folk-infused undertones.
2. "Melted on the Inch" - Boss Keloid
Grizzled vocals and heavy chords converge with progressive components.
1. "The Scars of Man on the Once Nameless Wilderness Pt. 1 and Pt. 2" - Panopticon
Panopticon (Austin Lunn) has released a breathtaking double LP that goes above and beyond anything I've personally heard a solo artist release before. Part one is filled with aggressive, atmospheric black metal injected with Lunn's brand of Americana, while part two contains primarily country-folk flourishes. Take two hours and either go for a hike or drive through the countryside and let this album become you.
