“Documentaries are TV shows that no one watches,” Leilani (Issa Rae) fires back at her husband Jibran (Kumail Nanjiani), a documentarian who fancies himself a “social activist.” No sooner does the couple decide to cancel their four-year relationship than they’re witnesses to murder. That leaves the filmmakers with two mysteries to solve: whodunit, and how to reconcile the busted romance? The script calls for Leilani and Jibran to bicker incessantly, leaving director Max Showalter incapable of generating the illogical universe needed to make his unreasonable characters ring true. Prevailing pop-culture references supplant conversation — we interrupt our frantic dinner patter for a mood-shattering riff on the depth of metal milkshake cups. The poise, potency, and believableness that Issa Rae brought to The Photograph are nowhere in sight. Leilani’s a non-stop panic attack, while Nanjiani’s Jibran desperately whines over her dialogue. I wanted to enjoy my time spent with these characters, but Showalter never gave me the chance. (2020) — Scott Marks
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