Though we might all have different paths and have distinct ideas of what relationships should look like, most people hope to find their person. It is a human trait to search for connection, with hopes that it may turn into a long-term relationship. Unfortunately, when things don't exactly go according to plan, it can leave us feeling empty and cynical.
In her anti-romantic comedy, Toss It, director/ actress Michele Remsen follows four women on their very different journeys. All of the women think they have their lives figured out. However, they soon discover just how little they know. Emily (Remsen), a witty but pessimistic woman, finds herself in Philadelphia at the wedding of Bobby (Eric Goss) and his new bride Natalie (Allison Frasca). At the reception, Emily is seated next to Finn (Phil Burke), an old friend from college.
The pair appear to be the only single people in the room — except for Bobby and Finn's Uncle Claude (Malachy McCourt), and there's a palpable sexual tension between them. After years of philandering, Finn suddenly decides it's time to take his friendship with Emily to the next level. For her part, Emily is intrigued but unsure. She knows all of the sordid details of Finn's past, and after being disappointed continually in her dating life, she's not sure she can cope with weathering yet another storm.
As the wedding unfolds, we come to understand more about all of the characters, including Natalie and Bobby, Natalie's quirky but likable maid of honor Marie (Jenny Zerke), and Finn's regal mother, Adele (Blair Ross). Toss It draws in viewers with promises that it will explore something further with Emily and Finn. Though the film leads us back there in the end, the winding road to get there is way more long-winded then it needed to be.
Presenting Finn and Emily's backstory even as it related to Adele and her relationship with her husband would have been more than enough detail for a feature-length film. Unfortunately, as Remsen branches out into other characters trying to give them equal time in the spotlight, the film's core folds within itself.
Female characters certainly don't need to be likable. However, Natalie's abrasiveness and shrill nature overtake the entire film. There appears to be no real reason behind her character's motivations. Instead of coming across as cunning, she is reduced to the old-ball and chain stereotype who is equally as nasty to her husband as she is her best friend. The character seemed too off-beat from the rest of the film that it often felt like the audience was watching an entirely separate movie when she dominated the scream.
In contrast, the commanding presence of Emily and Adele could have undoubtedly carried the film alone. Furthermore, a good deal of Toss It's narrative was buried under a great deal of unnecessary dialogue. The actors were rarely allowed to exist in the scene, allowing the audience to watch and observe them. Instead, they traded in-depth quips nad barbs that flopped more often then they landed. A much tighter edit could have helped cut out some of that while refocusing Emily's story and her experience.
This is not to say that Toss It's narrative doesn't have good bones. All of the women are different and distinctive characters with their own approaches to life. A romantic comedy told from this particular perspective, centering life-long friends, in a way that isn't Disneyfied or cutesy in also extremely interesting. Unfortunately, in an effort to try and unfurl all of these viewpoints once, the heart of the story gets lost in the mix.
Toss It is currently streaming on Amazon Prime VIdeo.