I felt obligated to go see this one in theaters… mainly so that I can have an excuse to go back to LA after more than a YEAR of absence. My home. ️
Emma Seligman’s directorial debut has the After Hours dream-state of insane coincidences, the modern family claustrophobia of Krisha, and the industrious escalation of mother!. Most importantly though, it’s a total laugh-a-thon crowd-pleaser, and the bottleneck time restriction of 78 minutes saves it from possibly reaching into pretentious or repetitive territory. I completely bought the family tight performances/characters too, if not also the absolute social dread of having to be the child failure during relative gatherings, idly attempting to prove that you’re on a path of accomplishments through white lies. Extra points for relatability!
But seriously, so glad I decided to watch this one in theaters; the crowd was hysterical throughout! Missed this!
Verdict: B
“Shiva Baby” is now playing in select theaters and is available to rent on Amazon Prime.
Burning the Celluloid 
Published by