2025 - ANOTHER SIMPLE FAVOR, late out of the gate sequel

The first film, A Simple Favor was an entertaining comedy/mystery with Anna Kendrick as a lifestyle vlogger who gets mixed up with and matches wits with a flamboyant woman (who dresses flamboyantly) played by Blake Lively.  Murder, attempted murder and insurance fraud all result with ordinary middle class mom Kendrick getting the upper hand with Lively and sending her to prison.  The film was an entertaining Hitchcock like thriller.

Seven years later this nobody asked for it sequel arrives with actors from the original cast recreating their roles from the first film.   In this film, the Blake Lively character is out of prison and getting ready to be married to a rich member of the Mafia (don't ask how this happened) in Sicily.  The Lively character persuades Kendrick to attend her wedding and be her maid of honor (ridiculously improbable).  Once again murder ensures with the viewer and the Kendrick character having to figure out what exactly is going on this time.

 

Another Simple Favor is to put it mildly a mess.   The convoluted plot turns and the foolish and at times unbelievable shenanigans of the characters finally defeat the film which clearly wanted to be in the tradition of the Hitchcock "beautiful people, beautiful places" formula. The last part of this film ends in a series of ridiculous scenes that would strain the most mediocre Agatha Christie story.

With the exception of Anna Kenderick who almost holds this mess together, it's completely forgettable and easy to see why Another Simple Favor went directly to streaming instead of getting a theatrical release.

The film was written by Jessica Sharze and Laeta Kalogridis and clearly no one actually read what they wrote before they filmed it.  The running time is 120 minutes.