The 40-Year-Old Version Review

 
NR (It’ll be rated R though)Runtime: 2 Hr and 9 MinutesProduction Companies: Endeavor ContentDistributor: N?ADirector: Radha BlankWriters: Radha BlankCast: Radha Blank, Peter Y. Kim, Oswin Benjamin, Reed Birney, Imani Lewis, TJ AtomsRelease Date: N/A
In the heart of Harlem, NYC playwright and high school drama teacher, Radha, is struggling with becoming a well-respected writer and with the fear of approaching 40. As she attempts to navigate in a White, male-controlled theater community, and dealing with her rambunctious trouble-making students, she feels at the end of her ropes. That's until she finds motivation to return to rapping – her once most driven passion – as her outlet under her performer name RadhaMUSprime. She hits up a beats producer and starts to make a mixtape with him. When her latest play gets picked up in the midst of her being accustomed to her new platform, Radha must choose how she wants her voice to be heard.
With her debut feature as a screenwriter, director, and actress, Radha Blank bursts out the gate with vigor and wit. If there was way to describe The 40-Year-Old Version, it would be like if the Judd Apatow comedy bore the groundedness and human relatability of Noah Baumbach’s Frances Ha – if Frances Ha was centered on a Black woman and native New Yorker who is relatable to most residents in the city and to Black people who are attempting to make their name in the industry.
First and foremost, Blank sets herself on centerstage and showcases her abilities as an onscreen talent and a writer, which she succeeds the best under. From the first 20 minutes, as Radha’s patience is tested when a White male producer says he’s working on a slave centric play and wants her to write it, it becomes clear how personal this piece was to Blank. If there's one aspect that I adored about the script is how much truth and honesty it brings to the experience of getting your foot in the door of the entertainment industry, and how life draining and rather grueling it is to have to appease the superiors who are often White people with wealth and power. This was the right time for me to see this because there's a rap Radha dishes called "Poverty Porn," which (1) I want on Spotify along with her other raps featured here, and (2) should be Lupita Nyong'o’s new anthem after being snubbed at the Oscars. I love how much Blank’s screenplay has an honest commentary of the industry and how hard you have to sacrifice to make a name for herself. Besides bearing a good amount of personal intellect, the script is also pretty funny. Aforementioned, it has all the trappings of an R-rated studio Judd Apatow comedy: raunchy humor, some played for shock value and a sharp-edged wit that hits deep in a relatable level. Blank emulates Apatow's brand of humor, but spins it in her Black girl magical manner. I enjoyed much of the ensemble and the designated roles they play, but everyone shines bright when they're onscreen with Blank. She exudes so much charm that you wonder how come she's not already a star. I like the friendship she shares with her best friend/agent (Peter Y. Kim), who has to walk eggshells around Radha to help her achieve her goals in her career. The banter makes for a lot of hard-hitting humor that had me bursting out in laughter. I also enjoyed Oswin Benjamin who brings a great amount of warmth to this character and plays a significant role as the film progresses.  
To continue with addressing as to how much this bears resemblance to Apatow's works, with everything I said regarding the positives, it also applies to the negatives, as well. Because of Apatow, I established a rule where if a comedy is over 2hrs, it's getting a half a star redacted automatically. Harsh? Yes, but seriously, there is no reason at all any comedy ever needs to be over two hours long. You're not making the most epic comedy ever or anything. That complaint applies here, for Blank bites on more subplots than she can chew. There are around four or five subplots that are established early on, and so many of them could've been cut or condensed. When the final act comes, it feels as if, with each open thread she opens, she sews it back together with another one when they should be wrapping up the story. You feel that runtime. A number the scenes go on for too long, and as a result, it disrupts the pace, along with screwing up the comic beats. A lot of the jokes that are funny on paper fall flat because they’re undercut by bad editing.As funny and clever as The 40-Year-Old Version is, I feel it's a bit confused regarding what kind of humor it wants to commit to. A large portion of the jokes work, but then they don't. It glaringly tries too hard to appeal to everyone like a studio comedy when it doesn't have to. It's an independent feature and a damn good one at that. Rating: 3.5/5 | 76%