'Pretty Problems' Review: Rich People Get Very, Very Wine Drunk In Fizzy Hangout Comedy

Sometimes the grass really is greener. It's a lesson Jack and Lindsay (Michael Tennant and Britt Rentschler) learn in "Pretty Problems," even if it's not like their side of the fence offers much competition. The young married couple are stuck in the kind of rut no one expects to encounter at such a young age. She's an aspiring fashion designer who's had to follow her dreams and work in retail, while he's an adorable schlub selling solar panels door-to-door while making sure his sales agent probation (who is tragically called Doug) does not send him to prison. They have a non-existent sex life despite their best efforts and seem to be floating in a sort of domestic purgatory that is difficult to escape.

Everything changes when Cat (JJ Nolan) walks into the shop where Lindsay works. The vape-loving, wine-guzzling trophy wife is everything Lindsay isn't: free-spirited, glamorous, and completely free from the everyday trivialities that come with having to earn a living. The two women strike up a conversation about fashion, and Lindsay soon decides to buy a copy of every item in the store. And if the massive commission wasn't enough of a gift for Lindsay, she invites the couple to spend a weekend with her and her billionaire husband Matt (Graham Outerbridge) at their Sonoma County vacation home. Jack is understandably concerned that accepting an invitation from a complete stranger to an off-grid mansion is an easy way to get murdered, but eventually agrees to go.

When they arrive, they quickly realize their new rich friends are even richer than they thought. Brad and Cat live in a mansion that would make Jay Gatsby blush, with multiple guest houses, servants on hand to meet their every need, and vineyards as far as the eye can see. The guest room is even stocked with plush gift bags filled with weed, lube, and custom bathrobes embroidered with classic badass rock puns. It turns out they're here for Cat's birthday weekend, with Cat telling Lindsay that she invited them because she despises the other two guests (an heir to a tater tot fortune and her influential girlfriend). She needed someone from outside her wealthy bubble to balance things out, which is rather ironic, given that the weekend itinerary costs more than the GDP of a small country. Party guests sip rare tequilas not sold on the open market, enjoy a wine tasting with $300 bottles before deciding to buy two cases of everything, attend private yoga classes and to healing sessions, and finally end the weekend with a drug-fueled silent rave.

Based on that premise, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Wine Country Weekend will eventually turn into some kind of "Eyes Wide Shut" horror show or "Succession" type exhibition of rich being morons. But the party rages on without a major twist, and "Pretty Problems" never comes close to reaching either extreme. As far as ultra-rich characters go, Matt and Cat are actually pretty hard to hate. He's as close to a "self-made billionaire" as anyone can get, but still readily acknowledges the multitude of strokes of luck that helped him make his fortune. And she may be a frivolous spendthrift who lives an excessively comical life, but she's always ready to open her checkbook at any time to help out a friend. They treat their staff well and pay them even better - in many ways their biggest sin is wasting large sums of money that they can clearly afford to waste. Sure, they're two bulls who treat the world like their own personal china shop, but they're always willing to pay the owner back for the damage they've caused (plus a little extra for his annoyance).

So anyone expecting "Pretty Problems" to turn into a biting satire on wealth will be deeply disappointed, as the script brings a melon baller into a knife fight the few times he dips his toe in social comments. Kestrin Pantera's film is much more interesting when it explores Lindsay and Jack's reaction to how the other half lives. The opulent displays of wealth serve as a Rorschach test for their stagnant marriage, with Lindsay admitting how badly she wants to live in this world and Jack realizing he'll never be the kind of partner to get her there.

The dynamic between the two of them is humanly refreshing: their life goals and the means to achieve them are increasingly opposed, but they are still bound by a true love that shows in every scene. Their discussions about their marriage have less to do with the pros and cons of wealth than with the compromises needed to build it. T...