In the middle of the night, Ben (B.J. Novak) receives a troubling phone call saying that his girlfriend has died.  Confused, because he has no girlfriend, Ben eventually realizes the caller is talking about Abeline (Lio Tipton), a casual internet hookup who apparently led her family to believe that their relationship was something much deeper.  Resigned to attend her funeral to help bring closure to the family, Ben agrees to fly out to Texas where Abeline’s brother, Ty (Boyd Holbrook), meets the New York based journalist and podcaster at the small, dusty airport.  On the way back to the family home, Ty tells Ben that Abeline did not just die, she was murdered, and that they will solve the crime together.  Ben, however, has different plans and wants to document the search and turn it into a true crime podcast and a commentary on modern American life. 

Vengeance is a dark comedy written, directed, and starring B.J. Novak and finding release from Focus Features.  The 94 minute feature debut is looking to say a lot, much like Ben is, about where we are in our current confused culture about politics, entertainment, and how we choose to spend our idle time.  In that way, and coupled with the plot point of an outsider getting settled into the great state of Texas, it is not dissimilar to Sean Baker’s Red Rocket (2021) which also sought to investigate Texan pride, however Vengeance is not nearly as scathing of an indictment to the fanatical bit of state heritage and is also much more blunt than Baker’s takedown.  If anything, Vengeance tries to have its cake and eat it too while it highlights some of the more stereotypical aspects of Texas while also taking time to feature the often-overlooked values that small town life can bestow upon its residents. 

Novak leads the fish out of water film as Ben, and thankfully he does not shy away from being the butt of the joke when the film requires him to be.  Ben is a perfectly annoying character who will go through great lengths to redeem himself in the eyes of Abeline’s family – and the audience – only to screw it all up with his city-born prejudices.  When we see one of the potential titles for the podcast – Douchebag Goes West – it is that self-pointed humor that saves the film from being too brash and standoffish, even to audience in more blue leaning markets, because Ben is, well, a douchebag of a character to everyone he meets.  A lesser script would not have knocked him down as much or as often as Novak does in Vengeance. 

For all of the droning on, wax poetic, that Ben does in the film, Ashton Kutcher’s Quentin Sellers, a music producer “making dreams come true since 2018,” delivers a delightful performance the really drives home some of the film’s philosophies.  He calls Ben out – “you’re here to make fun of us” – and it’s such a smartly laid bit of commentary on the media’s fascination with gawking at our neighbors, oddly enough this sort of poverty tourism is something Baker has been accused of in the past given his affinity for communities left behind and on the fringe.  At its most nefarious we have long running “reality” shows such as Hoarders and My 600 Pound Life, guised as human interest stories and advocating for healthy lifestyles that treat their subjects like animals in a cage.  On the other end, shows such as Jersey Shore and Duck Dynasty which showcase a “different” way of living while there is Keeping Up with the Kardashians which immortalizes and glamorizes a superficial lifestyle where money is no object.  It is a pretty disgusting subset of popular culture and genre of entertainment, and it is refreshing to see Vengeance be unafraid to call the habit out head on instead of playing into it, while also grating it onto the self importance of true crime reporting that seeks to monetize tragedy. 

Vengeance is trying to do a lot in its short run time and meets those objectives with varying degrees of success.  First and foremost, as a commentary of content consumption, it excels even if it wears its themes on its sleeve.  As a dark comedy, the film is also quite adept at creating absurd and twisted situations.  As a murder mystery, however, Vengeance falters.  As the plot unfolds, it becomes clear that the mystery surrounding Abeline’s untimely death is not at all the core of the film, but rather the excuse to delve into its thesis, but in the final ten or so minutes the script takes a final throw back into the mystery plot and it feels so counter to what has been set up to this point.  With a little more focus and attention into the framing device, Novak could have elevated the film into almost a diet version of the Coen Brothers’ Fargo (1996) but swapping the Minnesota snowdrifts for Texas desert sands.  The delivery, however, is a strong effort and the mark of a growing talent and it will be exciting to see the comedian’s sophomore feature.