From left: John Cena, Leslie Mann and Ike Barinholtz
In the serviceable sex comedy “Blockers,” three parents stalk their teen daughters, hoping to prevent the high school students from losing their virginity on prom night.
It sounds preposterous, and the worried, well-meaning adults get into many such absurd situations, but it manages to share a thing or two about maturity and empathy.
The parents (John Cena, Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz) discover a group chat participated in by their daughters (Kathryn Newton, Geraldine Viswanathan and Gideon Adlon), who discuss, mostly in emoji code, that they have a sex pact: To sleep with their boyfriends, who will accompany them to the prom.
Chaos ensues, naturally, as the older trio attempts to track the teens down, sometimes to hilarious effect. The humor is physical and situational, but as with most comedies of this nature, it’s mostly hit-and-miss.
The sex gags, drug references and bodily function jokes offer quick and mindless laughs. But, the Kay Cannon film, despite its barrage of vulgar and gross jokes, manages to balance out the crudeness with uncommon sensitivity.
Daughters, from left: Gideon Adlon, Kathryn Newton and Geraldine Viswanathan
Inclusivity
Alongside a number of raucous moments, the messages of inclusivity, women’s rights and respect for sexual preference are transmitted properly, layering a seemingly dumb and by-the-numbers effort with insightful relish.
Speaking of openness, Gina Gershon briefly but memorably appears as a sex-positive mom who is transparent about her ongoing intimacy with her longtime hubby (Gary Cole).
So, aside from the message that adults can be cool and “normal” people to their kids, the generation-gap dynamic is mined as much for drama as for guffaws.
Mann’s character, fast approaching empty-nester status, illustrates how precious the mother-child bond is, no matter how occasionally infuriating and invasive the protective parent can be.—OLIVER PULUMBARIT