Duck Butter (2018)
Running Time: 1hr 33mins
Naima (Alia Shawkat) meets a singer, Sergio (Laia Costa), in a bar and ends up going back to her place with a small group of friends. Sergio appears to be everything that Naima is not and the two are quickly drawn to one another. Sergio is confident, self-assured, and gives the impression that she knows exactly who she is and what she wants. Naima, on the other hand, is timid, reserved, uncertain, and gives the impression that she’s still figuring out her life.
The two women decide to cut out all the unnecessary steps of dating and dive right into really getting to know each other. They have both admittedly experienced a lack of transparency and honesty in previous relationships. To remedy those past experiences, they agree to spend the next twenty-four hours together physically, emotionally, and intimately.
As I’m sure most of you could predict, spending twenty-four hours, without sleep, with a complete stranger will have its share of ups and downs, strange interactions, bizarre revelations, and downright weird/gross behaviors.
I really liked the first half of Duck Butter. I thought it captured the way people are sometimes drawn to one another in inexplicable ways. It’s as if the situation or the connection defies reason and there is a magnetism that can’t be undone or ignored. These women made a decision to avoid the pleasantries and formalities of dating in order to spend an unusual amount of time together to try to learn who the other person truly is. I found this scenario to be both semi-realistic and interesting…at least until the second half of the movie which felt forced and unrealistic and even perpetuated lesbian stereotypes (think U-Haul). There was one particular scene at the end that was just, in my opinion, completely unnecessary and missed the mark by a mile. Overall, the characters were believable even if all of their actions were not.
Recommending the film is a tough call. As much as I liked the first half, I really disliked the second. As a final judgment, I would Absolutely recommend watching it, but only if you can watch it for free on someone else’s streaming account.
