'Bad Shabbos' Review: Method Man Is Hysterical in an Entertainingly Harmless Dark Comedy | PSIFF 2025

Dark comedies, particularly ones revolving around an ensemble cast of quirky characters, have been done many times before. Bad Shabbos is easily comparable to films like Clue in its story of a crew of average dinner guests who need to cover up an alleged murder. Even The Trouble With Jessica, a film that screened at last year's Palm Springs International Film Festival, had an extremely similar premise (though it also had a fairly problematic depiction of suicidal ideation). Thankfully, Bad Shabbos is a much more tasteful comedy surrounding an unexpected death, but it also doesn't do too much to stand out from the crowd.

Taking place on a seemingly ordinary Shabbos (which is the Jewish day of rest for those who don't know), young David (Jon Bass) and his recent-Jewish-convert fiancé Meg (Meghan Leathers) are going over to David's parents' (Kyra Sedgwick and David Paymer) for dinner. They're joined by David's outlandish younger brother Adam (Theo Taplitz), his stuck-up sister Abby (Milana Vayntrub), and her douchey boyfriend Benjamin (Ashley Zukerman). This isn't just any ordinary Shabbos, as it will be the first time that David's parents and Meg's parents (Catherine Curtin and John Bedford Lloyd) will be meeting. However, things get very complicated when a dead body ends up on the premises, and David is forced to have his family appear as a normal happy bunch, even if it means enlisting the help of the building's eccentric doorman (Method Man).

Method Man Leads a Solid Ensemble in 'Bad Shabbos'

Dark comedies often live or die on the quality of their ensemble cast and how well they bounce off each other. In the case of Bad Shabbos, the ensemble is a rare case of the in-between, as it isn't so much living or dying as it is surviving. The characters of the film overall do fit the bill as a believable and borderline dysfunctional family unit, and their constant bickering does make for some entertaining moments of high jinks. With the exception of Meg's parents, Bad Shabbos also makes the wise decision to have every one of the main characters in the action, thus giving a pretty distinct array of reactions to the film's central event.

The core members of Bad Shabbos' ensemble are David and Meg, who are an adorably earnest and sincere couple despite their differences in upbringing. Their healthy and loving relationship contrasts nicely with the more contentious relations between David and his other family members, which manifest more as playful annoyance with one another as opposed to outright hatred and animosity. The closest thing to that is Meg's interactions with Ellen, as David's traditional mother doesn't necessarily approve of Meg as a potential new member of the family.

Several members of David's clans are clear standouts, with David Paymer's Richard fun-loving yet still fairly aloof father figure of the household. Theo Taplitz's Adam is also consistently entertaining to watch on screen, with his cavalier attitude and deadpan sense of humor bringing some of the film's funniest moments. Still, the real big star here is actually Method Man's Jordan. Though he may be best known for his long career as a beloved music star, Method Man gives an excellent comedic performance here, with the timing and charm of a comedy pro being on display at all times.

'Bad Shabbos' Feels Too Reminiscent of Other Dark Comedies

The structure of Bad Shabbos is fairly predictable from start to finish. It runs through pretty much all the familiar beats of a dark murder comedy, where the main heroes spend a big chunk of the film unconvincingly trying to hide a cadaver from those who aren't aware. It also doesn't help that Bad Shabbos literally opens with a gag that reveals what happens to the dead body causing so much trouble, so the journey from point A isn't as interesting considering we already know how the body gets to point B. Showing even subtle sequences like this early on is a frustrating trend that movies of all genres keep following for whatever reason, but it sucks the tension out of almost every preceding scene.

The predictable story would be forgivable if Bad Shabbos' execution of this darkly comedic crime caper had a truly excellent execution. In Bad Shabbos' case, the execution is honestly just okay. Some decently humorous jokes think outside the box on occasion, such as Adam's eerie pop ins out of thin air and Jordan walking through a heavenly doorway. For the most part though, Bad Shabbos plays things far too safe with a lineup of jokes that aren't entirely memorable. Surprisingly, some of the film's more dramatic moments are decently effective despite not getting too much attention. Meg's clashes with Kyra Sedgewick's overprotective and traditional worldviews are just one of many subplots that aren't given enough attention, even though it would have given the movie a clearer identity.

The end of Daniel Robbins' crime comedy wraps everything up into a nice convenient bow, which is a blessing and a curse for Bad Shabbos. As the curtain closes on the breezy hour-and-a-half runtime, the film's characters and the audience can walk away with a decent smile after some absurd high jinks. However, the high jinks aren't absurd enough to really bring in a lot of memorability. There are so many other dark comedies out there, some even mentioned in this very review, that have stood the test of time as rewatchable classics, but Bad Shabbos doesn't seem like it's going to have that same timeless legacy regardless of when it releases.