If you were to combine the worst parts of Hallmark Christmas movies with the worst parts of frenetic '90s rom-coms, you'd probably end up with something a lot like "About Fate." The women are crazy, the men are clueless, and the production is so cheap I could spend my time catching every bug no one bothered to fix.
Perhaps a film that has so little ambition doesn't deserve such a harsh summary. But, for the most part, we've moved beyond the most unnerving stereotypes of chick flicks. So it's more than a little disheartening to see Margot (Emma Roberts) lose her mind when her boyfriend Kip hers (Lewis Tan, "Into the Badlands") suggests they have dinner at Bennigan's.
Director: Marius Vaysberg
Writers: Tiffany Paulsen, Emil Braginskiy, Eldar Ryazanov
Stars: Emma Roberts, Thomas Mann, Madelaine Petsch
For reasons that only make sense to screenwriter Tiffany Paulsen, who also penned the Roberts vehicles "Nancy Drew" and "Holidate," Margot is obsessed with the idea that Kip must be proposing. They've only been dating for three months, so Kip is just as baffled as we are by the reality of him having no strings attached to him. But after throwing a drink in her face and storming out, he experiences the moment that changes her life.
Because it turns out that people actually propose at Bennigan's! Or, at least, Griffin (Thomas Mann, "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl") does. And to her surprise, her influencer girlfriend Clementine (Madelaine Petsch, "Riverdale") is less than impressed by the place. So naturally she storms out too. (The restaurant's proudly prominent product placement creates a presumably unintentional but highly entertaining contrast when the characters are forced to drink their coffee in "Starcups.")
A miserable and drunk Griffin soon ends up at Margot's house because, she hopes, they both live at 15 Maple Drive. However, it is not the same; they are at different ends of a giant condominium community. This quirk of fate (a polite way of saying "first draft", in this case) should cause real chaos at his local post office, as even Griffin doesn't realize he's entered the wrong apartment. . Until, of course, Margot accidentally got into bed with him and they both jump up screaming.
Anyway. Margot promised to take her new fiancé to her sister Carrie's wedding, which is TOMORROW. So not only does she need a date ASAP, but she also needs one who is nice and cute and willing to pretend to be Kip! Que. To do?
Right, they all end up at the wedding, where the family loves Kip, who is actually Griffin. (You guessed right, right?) But then the real Kip shows up! And now Margot has to choose between two boys, instead of neither! Meanwhile, Carrie (Britt Robertson, “Big Sky”) is a super uptight girlfriend because, again, they're women. And Margot has practically ruined the wedding with her typical irresponsible antics. Although, as Griffin is realizing, one man's irresponsible antics are another man's manic pixie dream. But wait, Clementine is still waiting for him to come to her New Year's Eve party! (Oh yeah, it's New Year's Eve, too.) Plus, Griffin has probably seen "Riverdale," and who would be stupid enough to turn down Madelaine Petsch?
Breathe easy, because in the end everything works out, although not for us, since we will never get that hour and 40 minutes back. Not good for Cheryl Hines and Wendie Malick, either, who bring a welcome but all-too-brief gravitas to this circus; he only receives a few lines each as mothers.
Watch About Fate 2022 Movie Trailer
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