While there have been amazing advances in translation technology, communication mix-ups are still bound to happen from time to time. Whether or not these little cultural goofs will somehow culminate in death and mayhem, however, is really up to the individual. Of course, a travel movie like I Don’t Understand You makes its own blunders-turned-chaos […]
Image: Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells in I Don’t Understand You.
The babymoon finally commences once Dom and Cole land in Italy, however, there’s been a change in their plans, thanks to a family friend. And there lies the road to this story’s deadly language barrier. What ensues, after Dom and Cole reach their rustic dinner destination, is nothing short of ghastly, albeit in a darkly ridiculous way. Nothing here is premeditated, of course, but the characters’ responses and decisions are downright shocking. From there your viewing experience will likely involve a lot of snickering through your hands.
I Don’t Understand You is something of a return to those zany comedies fraught with outlandish and snowballing situations. The glaring difference is this movie’s own stock of disorder is far more grisly in execution than, say, that of any given National Lampoon offering. This is where horror fans would perk up and take delight. And it’s certainly not a blink-and-miss-it sort of mixing of genres; that series of hilarious horrors goes on for quite some time. So your mileage may vary, depending on how well you take to comedic yet bloody violence.
The gruesome antics for shock value won’t be universally loved, and the abrupt ending is also an issue, but I Don’t Understand You can still please with its combination of sharp wit, snappy pacing, and the likable, well-drawn main characters. This is a vacation horror story like no other, and like actual vacations, there are good and bad parts. Luckily, there is more of the former than the latter.
I Don’t Understand You releases in theaters starting on June 6.
Image: I Don’t Understand You poster courtesy of Vertical.