The Stream: Too long with a needlessly complicated plot.

The Big Screen: Giant hats and amusing banter.

The Final Bill: The costumes and quippy dialogue help distract from the complicated plot of this unnecessary sequel.

– Trip Fontaine
Director: Paul Feig
Writers: Jessica Sharzer and Laeta Kalogridis
Stars: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Henry Golding, Bashir Salahuddin, Alex Newell, Andrew Rannells, Michele Morrone, Allison Janney, Elizabeth Perkins, Elena Sofia Ricci
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Rating: R for violence, sexual content, nudity, language throughout, and suicide
Runtime: 1 hour 54 minutes
Production Companies: Amazon MGM Studios, Amazon Studios, BRON Studios, Lionsgate, Big Indie Pictures, Feigco Entertainment, Creative Wealth Media Finance
Platform: Prime Video on May 1, 2025

What’s up, Streamers!?! As the summer movie season at the theaters kicks off, the streamers don’t want to be left behind. Thus, not to be out done, Prime Video released the highly touted, Another Simple Favor, which is a sequel to the modest hit from seven years ago, A Simple Favor, reuniting stars Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively for a comedic and twisty, murderous romp. In this movie, Stephanie (Kendrick) is now a famous true crime vlogger who has written a book about Emily (Lively) and the events from the first film. When Emily unexpectedly returns from prison and invites Stephanie to her Italian wedding, Stephanie accompanies her diabolical friend to help her book sales and bolster her social media cred. Big hats and killer hijinks ensue.

As unnecessary sequels go, Another Simple Favor is pretty decent. The filmmakers have decided to go back to the well of the original and just do more of it. Blake Lively is clad is the most eye-catching fashions that get more over-the-top with every turn. She wears them well. Lively and Kendrick have good chemistry together. The two leads have a spark that infuses the overall story with enough fun to keep the audience engaged. Also, the change of setting adds something different. I don’t know if they actually shot in Italy, but whatever backdrop they used is real enough to make the setting enticing.

Since I talked about the details of the movie, you might gather that the plot is an afterthought. Essentially, it is more of the same from the original except with crazier twists and turns. Some of these surprises are truly ridiculous, which adds to the humor of the story but distracts from everything else. There’s a lot going on, and the movie doesn’t do a good job of balancing all of its threads. Because of that, the movie becomes overly complicated and longer than necessary. Nevertheless, it is never boring.

Ultimately, Another Simple Favor does enough with its details to be an enjoyable watch. Even though this sequel feels unnecessary, the costumes, the dialogue and the easy chemistry of the leads justify this movie’s existence. For fans of the original, you’ll slip right back into the mode of this world, but newcomers should be able to pick it up as well. Grab a bowl of popcorn and some friends for Sunday afternoon viewing.