The raunchy comedy No Hard Feelings is now streaming on Netflix after a successful box office run where it grossed $87.1 million worldwide. The movie stars Jennifer Lawrence and Andrew Barth Feldman as a pair of romantic interests with a sizable age gap.
Upon release, Lawrence received high acclaim for her role as 32-year-old bartender Maddie, a young woman who responds to a Craigslist ad looking for someone to “date” their introverted son Percy (Feldman) in exchange for a used car.
Lawrence deserved all the positive attention for her role and more – especially for her daring nude scene, which Decider’s Anna Menta says, “forces audiences to confront the nude female form in a way that is entirely divorced from sex.” However, many of the movie’s most memorable moments were led by Feldman, who emerged from the press circuit with very little buzz.
The actor is no stranger to the entertainment world as he made his Broadway debut in 2019 – straight out of high school – as the titular character in Dear Evan Hansen. His short run in the musical received immense praise with Steve Green writing in The New York Times, “At many moments he surprised me, despite my repeat viewings, with new melismas and spins on lyrics that sharpened the story to a slightly different point.”
In the R-rated movie, directed and co-written by Bad Teacher’s Gene Stupnitsky, Feldman’s character is cut from the same cloth as Evan Hansen – though he has much higher morals and makes smarter decisions. But like the other character, Percy largely keeps to himself, has little experience in the romantic department, and is incredibly anxious.
Once he meets Maddie, he begins to come out of his shell and follows the misguided adult on a series of wacky adventures, which includes making small talk while she tries to seduce him in private. “Did you grow up dancing?” Percy asks as Maddie twerks in front of him.
Prior to this, Maddie drives away from the beach with a naked and failing Percy on her windshield because she is keeping his clothes hostage in her vehicle.
In these moments, Feldman delivers several hearty laughs that play up his character’s naïveté, but in those moments he refuses to let venture into the “over-the-top” territory. Simply put, he stays grounded in his emotions. For instance, in another standout sequence, Percy serenades Maddie at a high-class restaurant with a toned-down rendition of “Maneater” by Hall & Oates, which was hailed as the best scene in the entire movie by Collider.
During the performance, Percy comes out of his shell and appears to have a newfound sense of confidence as he grows into his feelings for Maddie. Maddie, on the other hand, seems to be drawing parallels between herself and the song as the camera closes in on her face and shows her growing emotional. The two make intense eye contact for the last half of the song – and it delivers all the feels.
No Hard Feelings wouldn’t have been nearly as successful without the perfect actor playing Percy; the sticky subject matter is, at times, hard to grapple with. Luckily, Feldman is up for the job and delivers a multi-faceted performance that keeps viewers entranced and disarmed.
No Hard Feelings is available to stream on Netflix and VOD services.