Writer/director Ike Barinholtz knows this, because “The Oath” seems to build to that moment where Haddish grabs the screen and takes control. But when her big scene comes, it’s completely unsatisfying and muted, a missed opportunity floating among other missed opportunities. Her character Kai is reduced to a bland wife soothing the paranoid whims of her annoying husband, Chris (Barinholtz). You could have a fairly successful drinking game if you took a swig every time Kai says “can I see you in the other room for a minute” to Chris. Your booze of choice will be more satisfying than anything you’ll witness in that other room.
There’s promise in the premise of Barinholtz’s cinematic directorial debut. With the US so brutally divided amongst political party lines, the liberal Chris must host a peacekeeping Thanksgiving for his conservative parents Eleanor (Nora Dunn) and Hank (Chris Ellis) and his even more conservative brother Pat (Barinholtz’s real-life brother, Jon). Pat is as obnoxiously political as Chris, which puts them at each other’s throats for much of the film. Making matters worse, Pat has brought his blonde girlfriend Abbie (Meredith Hagner), who looks and sounds exactly like the Fox News anchorwoman from Hell. Also along for the ride is Chris’ sister, Alice (Carrie Brownstein), who shares his politics and, when their relatives’ opinions become too toxic, also shares her stash of weed.
Everyone is up in arms about the fictional president’s country-wide demand that all citizens sign a loyalty oath swearing their allegiance to the United States. Chris is vehemently against it, as it violates his First Amendment rights. Kai shares his opinion, but everyone else in Chris’ orbit, from co-workers to his aforementioned family, is taking the oath either out of fear or a warped sense of patriotism. “The Oath” intends to mine satirical gold with its signature requirement recalling protests like NFL players kneeling during the National Anthem. But Barinholtz’s script never hits a Swiftian mother lode; it’s just not willing to dig deep enough to cause any real damage. There’s talk of the government murdering people protesting the oath, but these details are quickly dispensed with rather than dwelled upon as soothsayers of doom.
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