This review contains spoilers.
The best way to describe “Roommates” is a movie you turn on late at night to fall asleep to and end up staying up until the end because it’s unexpectedly hilarious.
Released April 17, the Netflix original movie stars Adam Sandler’s daughter, Sadie Sandler. The entire cast is riddled with nepo babies, including Eddie Murphy’s daughter Bella Murphy, Chris Rock’s daughter Zahra Rock, Laura Dern’s daughter Jaya Harper and, briefly, Martin Scorsese’s daughter Francesca Scorsese.
Not to perpetuate the idea that nepo babies aren’t talented, but the acting in this movie was highly underwhelming. Sadie Sandler was the strongest of the bunch, with her timid performance matching her character Devon’s struggle to make friends.
Somehow, the voice of reason, the typically eccentric Sarah Sherman (Communication ’15), is a resident assistant telling the “cautionary tale” of Devon and Celeste (Chloe East) to two arguing roommates.
The movie opens with Devon at her high school graduation, visibly left out by her peers and more comfortable with her family. Recognizing she’s never had a true best friend, her mission for college is to find one.
Freshman orientation marks Devon’s commitment to a new roommate and aspirational best friend, Celeste, who would, unfortunately, become her worst enemy.
The two are fast friends, with Celeste’s confident, daring demeanor foiling Devon’s shyness and awkwardness. Celeste is slightly older and transferred from another school before starting at Walton University. If Devon had asked why Celeste needed to transfer, maybe some of their intense conflict could have been avoided.
Devon and Celeste are inseparable at the beginning of their time at Walton, attending several parties together, even in coordinated duo costumes. Their tumultuous relationship begins with Celeste asking to borrow money from Devon with no intention to pay her back.
The big singular incident is Celeste saying she was sick and asking Devon to write a paper for her so she could rest. Rather than resting, when Devon returns to their room, she walks in on Celeste in a compromising position with another person — not on her own bed, but on Devon’s.
Devon immediately closes her door and runs to the laundry room to call her parents. She tries to be forgiving, as this is Celeste’s first offense. Celeste was minimally apologetic, and the two move past the incident.
In contrast to other films that fail to represent relatable college conflicts, “Roommates” nails it. From unauthorized clothes borrowing to inconsiderate room usage, the film depicted very realistic scenarios.
I was also pleasantly surprised by the film’s humor. Netflix original movies rarely manage to get a real laugh out of me, but “Roommates” somehow accomplished this.
While the humor throughout was a high point, the character of Celeste was so infuriating at times that I debated slamming my computer shut out of frustration. She was constantly committing heinous acts and gaslighting Devon into believing she was innocent. From publicly outing Devon’s little brother’s sexuality at his high school to kissing Devon’s crush in front of her after forcing her into solo karaoke on spring break, Celeste made it a mission to make Devon miserable.
Celeste embodies a roommate from hell preying on Devon’s desperation for a best friend. Nevertheless, my anger at her kept me watching and entertained. However, for those who have roommate horror stories, this may be a movie to skip to avoid being triggered.
Overall, “Roommates” was a surprisingly humorous and realistic watch. There were little to no attempts at replicating “Gen Z humor,” and the plot was original and well-written. I definitely recommend “Roommates” for anyone looking for a late-night laugh or a reason to be grateful for their — hopefully — normal roommate.
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