It’s a grand Hollywood tradition for an established star to play against the ambition and drive that makes a career – to play a loser, a weirdo, a shut-in. Or, at the very least, a debased and dysfunctional version of themselves (Amy Schumer’s Trainwreck, all of Pete Davidson’s semi-autobiographical comedy). The new Hulu comedy Quiz Lady stars the comedian Awkwafina – AKA the dramatic actor Nora Lum, who stole scenes in Crazy Rich Asians and won accolades for her work as a grieving granddaughter in The Farewell – in loser drag as Annie Yum, a slouchy thirtysomething recluse long obsessed with a daily televised quiz show. The film’s hook is her pairing with Sandra Oh, playing against type as Annie’s brash Peter Pan of an older sister, Jenny.
Good premise, bumpy ride. Quiz Lady, directed by Jessica Yu from a screenplay by Jen D’Angelo, struggles to balance its discordant tonal registers, veering from heightened satire to heartfelt to absurd in swings more grating than humorous. The Yum sisters are broad sketches of childhood trauma played for laughs. A quick intro set in 1996 reveals that, to cope with a chaotic, dysfunctional household, Jenny acted out; Annie, 10 years younger, turned inward, latching on to the TV and her adopted pug, Mr Linguini. She develops a perfectionist attachment to the Jeopardy-style Can’t Stop the Quiz, more satire than homage, and its bumbling but reliable host Terry McTier (Will Ferrell, also a producer).
