A young couple, Rob and Anna, have been together for a while and are trying out different things to spice up their sex life. When Anna's friend Holly comes around for dinner one evening, Anna is quick to offer condolences about recently being dumped by her boyfriend, only to find that Holly has been rebounding from this with sex with multiple partners. This news puts an idea into Anna's head – that Holly, Rob and her should have a friendly, no-strings-attached threesome.
With such a broad concept and a rather crude opening, I had assumed that the majority of the film would be rather obvious in its nature, so perhaps I enjoyed it more than it really merited simply because I enjoyed the fresh feel of the awkwardness throughout. The whole threesome thing was always going to be a disaster but in this short it is one that unfolds before anything happens as nervous excitement and flirty discussion gives way to the cold hard fact that this is going to happen and that the reality is not going to be chilled and fun as the idea. The build-up and the realism hitting are both nicely done but ultimately the comedy comes down to two moments of awkwardness, the first of which is really well done and supports the second. The film really needed some more on top of that though because, although it is a fun little short, it doesn't have enough sharpness and consistency in the writing; a few more good moments would have helped and, while the ending is nicely funny in its awkwardness, it isn't really as strong an ending as one would have liked.
Dinner with Holly is worth a look for its fun and awkward energy, but it is a few more good moments short of being something really good.
With such a broad concept and a rather crude opening, I had assumed that the majority of the film would be rather obvious in its nature, so perhaps I enjoyed it more than it really merited simply because I enjoyed the fresh feel of the awkwardness throughout. The whole threesome thing was always going to be a disaster but in this short it is one that unfolds before anything happens as nervous excitement and flirty discussion gives way to the cold hard fact that this is going to happen and that the reality is not going to be chilled and fun as the idea. The build-up and the realism hitting are both nicely done but ultimately the comedy comes down to two moments of awkwardness, the first of which is really well done and supports the second. The film really needed some more on top of that though because, although it is a fun little short, it doesn't have enough sharpness and consistency in the writing; a few more good moments would have helped and, while the ending is nicely funny in its awkwardness, it isn't really as strong an ending as one would have liked.
Dinner with Holly is worth a look for its fun and awkward energy, but it is a few more good moments short of being something really good.
