Serious People relies on the same comedic beats to pad its runtime, resulting in a feature-length film that would have worked better as a short.
Directors: Pasqual Gutierrez, Ben Mullinkosson
Genre: Comedy
Run Time: 86′
U.S. Release: December 12 at The Quad (NY); December 16, 2025 on digital & VOD
U.K. Release: TBA
Welcoming a child into the world is one of the most joyous and life-changing experiences anyone can have. For Pasqual (Pasqual Gutierrez) in Serious People, however, it’s an extremely stressful time, as he must balance becoming a father with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to direct one of Drake’s music videos around the same time his partner is supposed to give birth.
To free up time to spend with his partner Christine (Christine Yuan) during her pregnancy, and to be more present when their baby is born, he decides to hire a doppelgänger. This stand-in will take his place and direct Drake’s music video. After all, what could go wrong? Well…quite a lot, actually.
When Serious People premiered at Sundance, I read reviews calling it extremely funny and I was excited to watch it. Unfortunately, when I finally saw the film, that wasn’t my experience at all. The premise is intriguing, yet the story runs out of steam before it even really begins. In fact, the movie would have worked better as a short because there simply isn’t enough material here to warrant its 84 minute runtime.
It’s obvious from the get-go that Pasqual’s plan will soon go sideways because Miguel (Miguel Huerta) proves to be incompetent. Although he may look the part, he’s the polar opposite of the person he’s portraying. Miguel may be an aspiring director, but he knows absolutely nothing about the craft, so much so that he can’t even tell the difference between editing cuts when the footage is played back for him.
Ironically, Pasqual ends up spending very little time at home with Christine in the process, as he has to show Miguel the ropes. Yet no matter how hard he tries, his fill-in doesn’t seem to get the hang of anything. Miguel, completely oblivious to this, has his own way of handling things, much to the frustration of Pasqual’s business partner, who was against the idea from the start.
Serious People has a short runtime as it is, but I couldn’t help feeling like the movie was extremely long. What makes matters worse is how repetitive and dragged out some scenes are. We get many moments between Pasqual and Christine, but nothing interesting is happening. These scenes often feel like filler meant to pad things out between the more eventful moments.
I think Serious People has its heart in the right place, exploring how people struggle with work/life balance and how the two overlap. However, the message it wants to convey isn’t delivered effectively. It also feels as though the film tries too hard to be humorous, but none of the awkward, ‘let’s-make-the-audience-uncomfortable’ strategies really land. Instead, it feels void of substance and difficult to get through.
Before watching the film, I noticed that marketing chose to put a user’s Letterboxd review on the poster that reads, “the worst movie I’ve ever seen.” It’s admirable that the cast and crew are taking the criticism in their stride, but it’s also a shame that this gag is the funniest thing about Serious People.
Serious People (2025): Movie Plot & Recap
Synopsis:
A director who gets the opportunity of a lifetime decides to hire a doppelgänger so that he can spend more time with his pregnant wife and soon to be born child, though the plan goes horribly wrong.
Pros:
- The film’s heart seems in the right place.
Cons:
- Despite only being 86 minutes, the film still feels way too long and drawn out.
- The humor doesn’t land and is stretched thin.
- There’s a lot of unnecessary filler added to pad out the runtime.
Serious People will be open at the Quad (New York City) on December 12, 2025 for a full week run. The movie will be available to watch nationwide on digital and on demand from December 16.
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