Review: The Bubble (2022)
by Emily Nagle
Brace yourself: this one is difficult to get through.
Released on Netflix last Friday, “The Bubble” depicts a cast and crew quarantined in a ritzy British hotel while they shoot the latest installment in the popular movie franchise Cliff Beasts. It boasts an ensemble cast with big names including Karen Gillan, Fred Armisen, Pedro Pascal, and Keegan-Michael Key, but that’s about all this movie has going for it. Directed by Judd Apatow (“Bridesmaids“, “This is 40“, “Knocked Up“), this movie is seriously lacking compared to his past credits.
At first, “The Bubble” is a witty commentary of the film industry and how much it was rocked by the pandemic; the character of TikTok sensation Krystal Kris (Iris Apatow) was a nice touch, since social media superstars have been increasingly taking to the big screen over the past few years. And the beginning pokes fun at Hollywood producers as we see the COVID-19 safety officer being told to treat the cast members like animals, which of course he questions because he just wants to bond with them. So it could be satire, but who knows? It’s hard to tell, because it’s not funny at all.
Relying heavily on references to trends from the height of the pandemic, “The Bubble’s” humor falls flat. For example, the cast shoots a cringey scene in Cliff Beasts 6 where Krystal Kris teaches a dinosaur a TikTok dance, and then everyone starts dancing (Yeah…there’s a LOT of TikTok references in this movie). Adam White of Independent called it a “Covid-themed Saturday Night Live sketch stretched to two hours“, and I couldn’t have said it better myself. The only thing that sets it apart is how much adult content there is. Notice how I didn’t call them “jokes” – because there’s just so much of it, and it’s usually unnecessary to the plot. It’s like they were trying to see how much sex, drugs, and profanity they could squeeze in.
Clocking in at 2 hours and 6 minutes long, “The Bubble” is longer than most Netflix comedies. If it was actually enjoyable to watch, the length wouldn’t be a problem. But because of how painfully bad this movie was, I couldn’t even finish it in one sitting – I had to stop watching about 30 minutes in, and then pick it up again the next day, and even then it was a chore to get through. There wasn’t anything in the movie that made me excited, or compelled me to keep watching.
My final thoughts? “The Bubble” is unfunny, and way too long. It’s not even bad in the endearing, “so bad it’s good” way. Which is disappointing, because there’s so much you can poke fun at in a satire about the film industry! But most of the time, this movie isn’t even really about Hollywood; it’s just a bunch of big-name actors participating in trends from 2 years ago, combined with a bunch of failed adult jokes and shock scenes.