YES DAY (2021)

Rather unoriginal, though the cast make it more likeable than it would otherwise be.

<em>'Yes Day'</em> is exactly what it says on the tin, you will not be shocked to find out what the plot is. It plays out in the most predictable way possible, even the hearty moments are a little too sickly at times. With that said, there are some minor decent bits.

Jennifer Garner (Allison) and Édgar Ramírez (Carlos) work well enough together, though Garner definitely stands out more. Jenna Ortega (Katie) does alright in her role, one that isn't too dissimilar to Isabela Merced's in <em>'Instant Family'</em> - as is the whole film, in actual fact. <em>'Yes Man'</em>, ft. Jim Carrey, also holds slight similarities as you might expect. Both those films are far better, fwiw.

Not one I'll be revisiting, but I could see families in particular having a fine time with this. Each to their own, of course.

Once upon a time, Allison (Jennifer Garner) and Carlos Torres (Édgar Ramírez) got married for the dubious reason that they both shared a habit of saying “yes” to everything (which I assume means no one else had asked for their hands in marriage before they met each other). They do a 180-degree turn after they have three children, to whom they regularly say ‘no.’ This is part and parcel of any responsible parent’s duties; however, if we’re to believe the brats she has for children, Allison is only slightly less bad than Norma Bates, or Joan Crawford in Mommy Dearest.

A school employee and father of six advises Carlos and Allison to have a "Yes Day," during which parents acquiesce to all of their children's wishes, as long as it's nothing illegal or dangerous. Allison's initial reaction is to laugh incredulously, and rightfully so; this is an incredibly stupid idea, not only as a parenting method (which of course doesn't stop people from practicing it in real life; e.g., Garner herself), but also as a movie plot – at best, this is sitcom material (in fact, Nickelodeon’s Victorious used the same premise about eight years ago).

That notwithstanding, she obviously will end up saying yes to this, and to several other things; otherwise there would be no film (we should be so lucky). All things considered, there are only two kinds of people who say yes to everything: sycophants and idiots, and something tells me both kinds were involved in the making of Yes Day.