There was a world in which Lauren (Amy Landecker) was an actress instead of a real estate agent in “For Worse,” having abruptly stopped taking acting lessons upon meeting her husband Chase (Paul Adelstein) and no sooner than the divorce papers are signed, she’s back in class, albeit amongst peers nearly half her age. It could appear at first that the title of the frisky comedy actually is referring to what happens post-marriage than during when Lauren is impulsively invited to the wedding of her classmate Maria (Kiersey Clemons) after the two become fast friends, desperately trying to keep her sobriety on a weekend that reminds her of where things went wrong in her own life, but the film hints at brighter futures, not only for the character Landecker plays, but in the “Transparent” star’s first-time role behind the camera as a writer and director.
It may be Landecker’s feature directorial debut, but professional experience shines throughout “For Worse” where there’s no doubt when Lauren is asked to participate in outrageous acting exercises that a demanding Stella Adler-esque instructor (deliciously played by Gaby Hoffmann) sets up to get her class out of their comfort zone, Landecker probably has some recurring nightmares from when she did them herself back in the day. However, she also has sharp directorial instincts likely gleaned from other sets she’s worked on when “For Worse” doesn’t have an ounce of fat on it, with each scene holding the set-up for a big punchline usually hiding in plain sight and as broadly comic as the tone is, Landecker becomes one of many in a strong ensemble that adds a little something extra that turns potential caricatures into real characters.
The opening frames of “For Worse” strongly signal the humor here when home movies of Lauren’s wedding to Chase unspool and a mix of slapstick and schadenfreude make clear things won’t ultimately work out from how hyper aggressively her new husband takes the tradition of smearing cake on her face. Two kids and some divorce papers later, she declines to take Chase’s parting advice is to watch his new girlfriend’s (Angelique Cabral) YouTube yoga videos to let go of her anger and instead, heads to the acting class where she is surprised to find a new friend group almost instantly. She is also lured into a potential new romance as well when she has trouble knowing whether Sean (Nico Hiraga), the class hunk a good twenty years her junior, is acting or not when they read scenes together. When Maria invites both to her wedding in Palm Springs, they end up carpooling with one another and would seem to be headed to sharing a bedroom if not for a bridesmaid who steals his attention almost right after they arrive.
The indignities of being a woman of a certain age certainly supply a fair share of the jokes in “For Worse,” but Landecker finds a poignant punchline when showing that any shame involved largely exists only in Lauren’s head. While she’ll frequently call her outspoken bestie (a scene-stealing Missi Pyle) back in L.A. for support, Lauren actually looks as comfortable amongst her younger carefree peers than their parents who may be around the same age as her and bound by responsibilities that she feels she’s shed herself. He can be disappointed by men on both ends of that spectrum as Sean proves to be flighty and she attracts the unwanted attention of a fellow guest (Ken Marino), a professional magician who holds little mystique for her, but the options lead her to take a liking to Dave (Bradley Whitford, Landecker’s real-life husband), Maria’s father who slinks around the wedding looking miserable, having paid for the house that it’s held in long past the point he’s lived there himself.
As much as any given character may not look at home in “For Worse” when there’s no lack of uncomfortable moments, Landecker helming the ship with the film operating at a fast and funny clip. While not all of the jokes land, the sheer volume and attitude behind them are difficult to deny and the filmmaker’s willingness to throw herself into the messiest situations imaginable speaks to a confidence that Lauren may have to win on screen, but Landecker has clearly earned off of it. In a film about weddings gone horribly – and hilariously – awry, having her become a multi-hyphenate is one of the few things to have a nice ring to it.
“For Worse” does not yet have U.S. distribution. It will next screen at the Cleveland Film Festival on March 27th at Connor Palace.