Beth (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is a successful writer working on her new novel.  Struggling through an advanced draft, she overhears her longtime husband, Don (Tobias Menzies), remark to his brother-in-law, Mark (Arian Moayed), that he does not really like the new book.  Feeling betrayed and abandoned by her support system, Beth must navigate these new truths and figure out how best to confront them, while also having to reconcile with the small lies she inadvertently tells the people she loves, too. 

Nicole Holofcener reteams with Louis-Dreyfus for You Hurt My Feelings, a written and directed by endeavor for Holofcener that was distributed theatrically by A24 after its Sundance premiere.  The 93-minute film boats a wide ensemble cast that helps to support and expand on the central premise while still staying snappy as well as adding some different flavors of comedy with the range of extended cameo appearances by some of today’s recognizable comedic voices across television and film. While maybe not quite household names, the cosigning onto this project by the likes of David Cross, Zach Cherry, and Amber Tamblyn among others helps audiences get into the groove of the story and settle in with these characters. Much of the comedy comes from the rifts in the tight-knit family unit of the core four characters, and having these recognizable supporting characters helps us feel connected to them as well. 

The simple concept of catching someone in a lie centers around Beth who, despite being highly successful in her career with a recently published and well-received memoir, seeks the validation and approval of those she holds dear to her. Louis-Dreyfus brings her usual charm to the screen, a stalwart of television comedy for some 30 years, it is always nice to see her make an appearance on the silver screen, too. The role does not ask her to overextend herself too much, but it requires perfect chemistry with all her costars and that is something she achieves masterfully. Some of her best scenes are with her sister, Sarah (Michaela Watkins) and their mother, Georgia (Jeannie Berlin). The three share a stubbornness that lends itself to some great banter back and forth, but also subtlety highlights the core message of the film: we want those that we love to succeed.  

Georgia’s more abrasive remarks that the book sales were great but could have been better really rub Beth the wrong way, but Beth then is unable to see that she has the same motivational spirit about her son, Eliot (Owen Teague), albeit much more sugar-coated than her own mother’s comments. To call it something cynical, this “blind support” also extends to how Beth discusses Don’s work as a therapist where, despite having never seen him work, she repeatedly says that she is sure he is fantastic at his profession. Don, faced with a bit of burnout and a crisis of age, is unable to have the deeper conversations he needs because she is so focused on effusing praise.  

The most difficult thing about You Hurt My Feelings is that it smartly does not dwell too long on this central incident, instead using it as a springboard to examine how we talk to the people we love, but because it is so quick to dismiss, audiences may be left wanting a little more exploration. It is an idea that is teetering on the edge of absurdity, but a little self-awareness by Beth that yes, this is crazy, but it is also necessary would allow the character to act out a little more wildly and it would still be accepted by audiences. It is not that this film would have been improved by a cataclysmic split – just the opposite, actually – but it needed more time spent with Beth taking her feelings to the extreme and building back to a place of understanding. As the center of the film, Beth can get away with being the most eccentric of the bunch and Louis-Dreyfus excels when she is allowed act with over-proportioned emotions, so she feels a little held back here in her performance. 

You Hurt My Feelings is simple to its fault, but nevertheless, it is an enjoyable film that does not wear out its welcome even if the narrative is stretched just a touch beyond its limits. It is a very kind film, almost as if Holofcener does not want to, well, hurt any of her characters’ feelings. While it is always nice to see a loving family unit portrayed on screen, the humor could still have used a bit more of a bite. Instead, it feels like everyone is tiptoeing around each other and if the heart of comedy is conflict, the conflict here is quickly dismissed and pushed aside resulting in an aimless wandering of a cast that is engaging to watch, even if they have nothing to do.