THREE NIGHT STAND Review

Release Date: January 16, 2015 (Limited and VOD)
Director: Pat Kiely
MPAA Rating: NR
Film Pulse Score: 6/10

If one were to describe Pat Kiely’s latest comedy, Three Night Stand, in one word, that word would be “awkward.”  If one were allowed two words they would be “extremely awkward.”  Fortunately, this extremely awkward comedy mostly works due to the ridiculous, yet hilarious situation the characters find themselves in despite having very few redeeming qualities.

The film stars Sam Huntington as Carl, a happy go lucky game designer who sets out on a romantic getaway with his wife Sue, played by Meaghan Rath.  Unbeknownst to Sue however, Carl is taking her to the exact ski lodge where he spent a lot of time with the former love of his life, Robyn, played by Emmanuelle Chriqui.  As fate would have it when they get to the lodge they find that Robyn has taken ownership of the place, and a complicated and uncomfortable love triangle ensues.

Things are exacerbated by the fact that a dickish French-Canadian actor and his mother are staying there as well, then Carl’s co-worker and her husband show up, and finally Robyn’s husband shows up.  Before you know it, there are eight people all with strange intertwining relationships under one roof providing plenty of awkward interactions, drama, and hilarity.

Now, everything I just described may sound like a typical romantic comedy, and at its core Three Night Stand can surely be categorized as one, but there is much more substance to this film than what you’d expect.  The relationships are complicated and much of it plays out differently than what one would expect- much more real.  The comedy is darker than a silly PG-13 romp, and the characters are more vicious to one another in times of conflict.

The comedic aspects are mostly on point, with Sam Huntington handily providing the bulk of the laughs.  His reaction to the ever-increasing craziness that he created for himself is not overdone and fits the tone of the film perfectly.  He’s a complicated character, one that we initially like, then hate, then kind of like again.  He has an ongoing sexual problem throughout the film, which I thought was going to go one way, but Kiely thankfully took it in a different direction.  This ends up speaking volumes about Carl’s broken emotional state.

Three Night Stand is a fun, over the top comedy that provides a solid amount of laughs without exhausting the viewer with its abundant amount of relationship drama.  Some of the decisions of the characters may be illogical, and the film may feel entirely too cumbersome at times, but it’s still a refreshing take on an otherwise tired formula.