The Lovebirds Parent Guide

Jibran (Kumail Nanjiani) and Leilani (Issa Rae) fell in love at first sight – or so they thought. As their relationship continues, tensions which they hadn’t noticed in the beginning begin to wear through, sparking loud arguments. Eventually, driving to a party, they break up…but that’s not the worst part of the drive. Immediately after the breakup, a cyclist (Nicholas X Parsons) swerves in front of the car and bounces over the windshield. The cyclist is unwilling to stay and exchange insurance, though, and quickly takes off. As if that weren’t enough, a man identifying himself as a police officer (Paul Sparks) commandeers their vehicle and gives chase, eventually ramming the cyclist before fleeing the scene. Now convinced that they’re wanted for murder, Jibran and Leilani decide to go on the run, solve the case, and clear their names. But they soon find out that there’s more to this hit and run than they expected…

I don’t know why Netflix keeps releasing these unbearably boring crime-comedies, but I desperately wish they would stop. Coffee and Kareem was already more than I was entirely prepared to watch, and this is just some terrible icing on that tire fire. They have a great deal in common: excessive profanity, irritating character writing, and a very specific focus on cell phones as evidence in murder investigations. That last one is the least of the movies’ collective problems, but it is a weird coincidence.

In addition to the constant cussing I mentioned before, the sexual content is really going to make for some uncomfortable family viewing. Maybe it’s just my family, but masked cult orgies really put a damper on the lighthearted fun. Although give credit where credit is due, these crime comedies usually involve heavy drug use, which is thankfully absent in The Lovebirds.

Not that that’s nearly enough to save this. Frankly, even if the movie was an “A” across the board, I would still find the characters’ constant bickering irritating, the writing contrived and unoriginal, and the pacing so slow as to approach glacial. I think the relationship between Leilani and Jibran is supposed to be charming and fun, but frankly, I couldn’t fault the villain of the piece for trying to kill them – if only to get a minute of silence.