New Yorker, serial dater and seemingly the only man left in Manhattan without his own podcast, Ben (played by BJ Novak, who also wrote and directed) spots an opportunity when he learns of the death of one of his many casual flings. According to her brother, Ty (Boyd Holbrook), Abby described Ben as her boyfriend. Strong-armed into attending her funeral, Ben is intrigued to learn that Ty believes his sister was murdered. The potential for a true crime podcast is too tempting to pass up, so Ben moves in with Abby’s extremely Texan family and their guns to investigate.
His podcast starts as a wry musing on modern America through the colourful local characters, but evolves as Ben sheds his metropolitan superiority and learns from his hosts. The wide, arid emptiness of the landscape – the film’s cinematography has a stark beauty – starts to exert a pull on him.
Novak seems determined to have his frito pie and eat it: he employs the broadest of cultural stereotypes while also mocking his central character for his stereotypical views. It’s mildly amusing stuff that delivers no surprises, but may muster a few laughs.
