Spoilers!
For my first film in theaters of 2025, I went with the comedy film, One of Them Days, featuring Keke Palmer and SZA. Sometimes, you do just have them days where everything that can go wrong seems to go wrong. And such unlucky breaks can make for comedic gold, especially in the charismatic, capable hands of Keke. She’s able to deftly navigate both the funny and the serious through One of Them Days.
The film is directed by Lawrence Lamont in his directorial debut for a feature film, which is a heck of a way to announce yourself. Similarly, this was Syreeta Singleton’s first feature film screenplay. If you didn’t know that, you might think Lamont and Singleton had done numerous comedy films before. Maybe because I just re-watched it recently, but by way of comparison, the film could easily fit in with the comedy trappings of 1987’s Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, where the propulsion of the comedy derives from zany action sequences and mishaps, even down to the earnest goofball character, with SZA in the Candy role as Alyssa, a spiritual frou-frou type who paints. SZA did exceptional in her first film role keeping up with Keke and providing that believable frou-frou (but earnest!) contrast. Singleton’s script is tight, too, a fast-paced 97 minutes that has enough time for hijinks and heartfelt scenes.
The story, which obviously takes places over one day, follows Dreux (Keke) and her roommate Alyssa, who was also letting Alyssa’s boyfriend, Keshawn (the goofy-funny Joshua Neal, another debut in a feature film; I would be shocked if this doesn’t propel him to some good roles) live there. Alyssa was supposed to pay the landlord the $1,500 monthly rent for their crappy apartment, but she gave it to Keshawn to pay the landlord, who instead used it to get his T-shirt idea off the ground. Keshawn was also sleeping around with Berniece (played by Aziza Scott in yet another debut in a feature film), a girl ready to throw down on Dreux and Alyssa for getting in her way. Their landlord is going to evict them by 6 p.m., if Dreux doesn’t come up with the money. Compounding everything is Dreux just got off the night shift at her waitressing job. No sleep for her, and at 4 p.m., she has an interview to become restaurant manager.
Throughout the ensuing hours, Dreux and Alyssa try to first get the money back from Keshawn, resulting in the aforementioned “throwing down” with Berniece. Two hilarious scenes result from that: Bernice running after them, only to smack face-first into an open car door, and then later, she catches up with Dreux and Alyssa at Dreux’s job interview, where her finishing move in the fight was like Yokozuna’s banzai drop in WWE (look it up). The latter, though, is what initially causes Dreux not to get the job because the interviewer realizes they can’t hire that kind of person. But before I get ahead of myself, another gag involves trying to procure a loan at one of those suspect fast money places, where the administrator just laughs at them for their horrendous credit scores and Kat Williams as Lucky tries to persuade them to not go in in the first place. Probably the funniest scene visually is when Dreux goes to the blood center to donate blood for money and the stripper-turned-phlebotomist tells her, sure, you can donate multiple times. Alyssa returns to find Dreux had donated four bags worth of blood and looks ghostly. She rips out the needle and struggles with the stripper-turned-phlebotomist, causing all four bags of blood to spill everywhere, looking like a gorefest. No money for their donations now.
Anyhow, after that fight at the job interview, like any great comedy, Dreux and Alyssa then verbally fight because they’ve reached the fever pitch of what they can withstand. Dreux tells Alyssa she needs to start respecting herself instead of throwing her life away, especially with people like Keshawn. Alyssa tells Dreux she can’t keep blaming Alyssa for how much she hates her own life. To add insult to injury, they return to find the landlord evicted them, putting all of their belongings, including Alyssa’s paintings, on the curb. Oh, and there’s a new ominous countdown (“to certain death”): King Lolo is going to kill them if they don’t pay $5,000 for the Air Jordans they stole from him and sold for $1,500 (which Beatrice then took after beating them up).
Fortunately, in the best gag of the whole film, there’s a white savior who has moved into the complex, Bethany (played by Maude Apatow, yes, the daughter of Judd Apatow). When she initially moved in, the landlord rolled out the red carpet for her, figuratively, by providing her cookies, the only apartment that actually matched the website’s photos, and laughing off her dog pooping in the bushes of the courtyard. When Bethany sees Dreux and Alyssa, she offers to buy Alyssa’s sunflower painting for $300. Dreux takes the opportunity to do a “pop-up” art show, leaning on Bethany’s social media influence to draw a crowd. They earn more than $5,000, so they don’t die. Better yet, the interviewer from before shows up, impressed by what Dreux has put together, and says she will call her back.
King Lolo shows up to collect his money, causing Dreux and Alyssa to run from to create a diversion. Their crappy apartment helps them because a piece of ceiling falls on his head knocking him out. That allows enough time for a.) the loan bank from earlier that Alyssa called to “collect” King Lolo for being delinquent on his loans, and b.) for Maniac (played by Patrick Cage), the man from the neighborhood Dreux was hot on, to save them from the fire because he’s actually a firefighter.
Everything works out after “one of them days.” Dreux and Alyssa re-ignite their friendship over a Cheetos margarita (the glass is rimmed with Cheetos), Dreux goes on to get that franchise manager position, Alyssa tells Keshawn off since he doesn’t respect her and is selling her artwork for $1,000 a pop, and they live together in an apartment that looks like the website’s photos.
I enjoyed One of Them Days. It had enough laughs and sincerity to keep me interested, and again, was in that sweet spot for a comedy of 90-ish minutes. Keke is one to watch, with her screen presence and comedic timing.
Milam's Musings 