LEZ BOMB: A Humorous & Endearing Must See Holiday Comedy

You think your holiday family gatherings are a challenge? Then you need to give Lez Bomb from writer and director Jenna Laurenzo a watch. This hilarious family comedy about a young woman trying to come out to her family during Thanksgiving is one of the funniest and endearing holiday films I have seen in a while.

While Lez Bomb is a story about coming out, at its core, it is a story about family – no matter how dysfunctional or unpredictable they can be. With holiday films, there is a tendency to lean towards the tacky, clichéd storylines of old. Yet, Lez Bomb avoids all these pitfalls, presenting a new perspective on the traditional, interlacing diversity and humor within a typically serious situation.

There are films that are synonymous with the holiday season. The Hallmark Channel is a staple, pumping out film after film surrounding love, loss and family. Then there are the classics, Thanksgiving offering the launch pad to their televised marathons – Elf, The Miracle on 34th Street, The Nightmare Before Christmas. Lez Bomb is sure to join these ranks, becoming an instant holiday classic, while broadening the range of holiday films for all.

This is literally, the most awkward Thanksgiving ever!

Dropping the Bomb

Lez Bomb has a slow and slightly awkward start as it begins to introduce “The main course and side dish” within Lauren’s (Jenna Laurenzo) life – her roommate Austin (Brandon Michael Hall) and her girlfriend Haley (Caitlin Mehner). While it feels as though the film is initially struggling to find its footing, you soon realize it is a foreshadowing of Lauren’s own lack of footing as she sets out to come out to her parents – a task she has chosen to accomplish before Thanksgiving dinner.

Arriving an hour before her “boyfriend”, Lauren attempts to come out, a task that proves to be more difficult than she had originally hoped. Distracted by the holiday festivities, desserts that seem to constantly appear and the unexpected arrival of her roommate Austin, Lauren finds assumptions are more easily made than the truth. With Austin presumed to be the “boyfriend”, Lauren now faces the struggle of telling her family she is gay AND Austin (who the family adores) is not her significant other – all while the minutes are ticking down to Haley’s arrival. Take this misunderstanding and throw in a few more eclectic family members, and you are in store for one hilarious film.

A Dynamic Family with many moving parts

Lez Bomb takes its time, pacing out the introduction of each new family member. Each is delivered with a solid backstory and depth that only adds to the credibility of the story, but also while emulating a family gathering many can relate to. A film with this many characters could have easily succumbed to underutilization and unnecessary inclusion, yet Lez Bomb avoids each of these pitfalls.

They work together as a unit, as well as individually, the family setting up a beautiful contrast to Lauren. Each member of the family has no inhibitions, saying whatever they wish and whatever comes to mind – interrupting and unafraid to offend. As Lauren struggles to say what she wants to her family, she is contrasted by their freedom of speech, stunted in her own inability.

Even Austin and Haley are categorized differently by the family, not outsiders but not members. They struggle to support Lauren, speaking only in innuendoes with regard to the matter at hand. While their innuendoes match the energy and spirit of the family, they are outsiders unable to say what Lauren is struggling with. It is a beautiful dynamic that is heightened further when you look at each of these three units, each representing a corner in Lauren’s “love” triangle.

Personally, I was immediately drawn to the matriarch of the film. There was something so real about Rose and commanding in regards to the performance delivered by Deirdre O’Connell. Her character seemed to have the most depth and credibility early on, a relatability that cannot be denied. As the film was finding its footing, I was falling in love with this character, my intrigue into her story engulfing me within the multi-layered folds that exist within Lez Bomb.

It was not all just about the characters that boded the success of Lez Bomb, it was the message and the story it was trying to convey. It was awe-inspiring to see an LGBT topic in an applicable, relatable and humorous way, such that you could enjoy and connect with the film no matter what your home life. The humor was honestly what made Lez Bomb so successful. The amazing script and its dialogue from Jenna Laurenzo, delivered by a stunning and talented cast, was brilliant.

One of the most delicate and ingenious features beyond script was the film’s score. The score that accompanies these multi-faceted characters is simple, elevating each performance and scene but does not engulf. Mostly the characters – who are constantly talking and interrupting one another – are the primary score for Lez Bomb, much like it would be for many of us at Thanksgiving. When present, though, the score from P.T. Walkley is a quiet accomplice to the mood the film is trying to create.

Accepting Oneself

Tackling the stressful and terrifying moment of coming out to one’s family is nothing new to film – and neither are the Thanksgiving antics that filmmakers pry on. What raises Lez Bomb above coming out films before it is its introspective look at realizing, accepting and understanding one’s own sexuality. Throughout the entire film, Lauren is concerned about how her parents and family will react, waiting to make her announcement as she wanted to be sure it was serious – on the surface serious being her relationship with Haley, but underneath it all serious about her sexuality.

So wrapped up in what everyone else thinks – friends, family and significant others – these individuals looking for acceptance may have never taken the time to look inside themselves, examine how they personally feel. Do they accept themselves? Are THEY okay with it?

We all have things about ourselves we do not like, or have a hard time accepting. For many it’s a body type, hair styles, or temperament (just to name a few), many things we may not like about ourselves is how we are – it’s normal. For Lez Bomb to take this accepted ritual of self criticism and apply it to one’s own acceptance of being gay is refreshing and new. Elevating it to a whole new level and going one step further, Laurenzo is not pointing a finger at society or the way an individual is brought up in regards to acceptance of LGBT. Instead, it is the individual perspective brought into the limelight and showcased on screen.

There is a scene where Lauren literally tells her mother she spent so much time worrying if she would be okay with it, she never took the time to ask herself how she felt. It is a heartbreaking moment, with the purest of honestly – so much so it will leave many wondering is there was more behind the words than dialogue on a page. It is a vulnerable and exposing moment within the film that will bring tears to your eyes, new perspective to the mind and warmth to the heart.

Conclusion: Lez Bomb

There are sure to be a plethora of holiday films to choose from this year – both in cinemas and within the comforts of home. If there is one film you see this holiday season, make it Lez Bomb. Its modern and hilarious take on coming out, during one of the most hectic and family-oriented holidays of the year, will allow it to become an instant and endearing classic for many holidays to come.

Have you seen Lez Bomb? What did you think? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Lez Bomb was released in theaters and VOD in the USA on November 9, 2018. For all international release dates, see here.