A tightly-wound trivia master is forced to team up with her chaotic sister to help pay off their mother’s gambling debts in “Quiz Lady”, a buddy comedy starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh.
The movie isn’t exactly what I expected. But I think, in this case, that works in its favour. Yes, there are more than a few scenes with jokes that fail to land – not to mention a story thread that’s rather predictable. But overall, “Quiz Lady” is actually quite funny and winds up containing a lot of heart.
The relationship drama that plays out between the sisters is fun to watch and both Sandra Oh and Awkwafina play their parts well and with such great on-screen chemistry. Now, again, some of the situations they get themselves into turn out rather cringy, simply because the jokes fell flat. But there are some genuine laugh out loud moments delivered by both of our leads. It was also pretty interesting to see Awkwafina take a step back into a more subdued comedic role, while Sandra Oh gets to let her funny flag fly as a semi-unhinged loose cannon.
And speaking of subdued, I think Will Ferrell definitely stands out by…well, not standing out. Of course, when you think of him playing the role of a game show host, your brain likely gravitates toward his over-the-top portrayal of Alex Trebek on SNL. In “Quiz Lady” he’s a lot more subtle. And with that subtlety, he channels Trebek’s lovability by playing a genuine, warm and sometimes cheesy veteran game show host. It really seemed like a fitting on-screen tribute to the late Jeopardy host. And when it comes to contestants, Jason Schwartzman was also pretty fun to watch as a rather annoying, Ken Jennings-style repeat champion.
All-in-all, “Quiz Lady” was a satisfying way to kill an hour and thirty-nine minutes. While it didn’t score all the points in the humour category, it did deliver a daily double dose of sincerity.
