Film Review: Palm Springs

Director: Max Barbakow
Starring: Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, Peter Gallagher
Running time: 90 minutes

A feeling that will resonate with anyone at the moment is that each day feels the exact same as yesterday. You can once again experience that feeling in Palm Springs, only this time in a more comedic way with Andy Samberg, famously known as Jake Peralta in Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

We start with an opening shot of a bored-looking Nyles (Samberg) in bed with his girlfriend getting ready for her friend’s wedding. Next, we are introduced to our other main character Sarah (Cristin Milioti), maid of honour and sister to the bride Tala (Camila Mendes). The two hit it off, sparks fly, and I’m sure you can guess what happens next. Well, guess again, because something outrageous happens—Nyles is hit by a bow and arrow and the next thing we know, Nyles and Sarah travel through a cave and end up back at the start of the very same day. 

Sarah is very confused—as you would be—and confronts Nyles. As it turns out, they somehow went into some sort of vortex that turns back time, and although this is the first time for Sarah, Nyles has done this many times over already. What will it mean for these two strangers stuck in time?

A great standout of this film is Andy Samberg playing Nyles. As a fan of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, I was already a fan of Samberg and this film simply cemented that feeling. Certain scenes portray his same character he shows us in Brooklyn Nine-Nine and it was an entertaining watch. For instance, when he first lays eyes on Sarah, he tries to “lure” her attention through dance. He may not be the best dancer but he's definitely creative, and satisfied the need to make me laugh whilst watching. 

What I loved about the film was the romantic element of it. Personally, I feel like Samberg and Milioti bounce off each other well in terms of their chemistry. The typical montage scene in films saw them grow closer and you can tell as they take advantage of their very peculiar situation.

However, downfalls to Palm Springs did stick out, and one of these is the beginning. It takes a while to get into the gist of the story, and it did seem a bit boring. Yet, in a way this resonated with the plot of the film, and even reality. As I said before, the plot of this film is relatable at the moment in terms of living in a constant loop of lockdown, so if this was done deliberately to duplicate this feeling, then I say well done.

Ultimately, Palm Springs was funny, yet relatable with the addition of Andy Samberg making it an even greater watch. 

Did you know? To distance the film from Groundhog Day, screenwriter Andy Siara decided to treat the film as a “a sequel to a movie that doesn’t exist”, skipping over Nyles’ backstory and instead focusing on his relationship with Sarah. 

Palm Springs is now on Prime Video