By: Ava Rogha
Always a Grind (2020), created by Joel Betancourt, explores the lives of three friends: Mike (Donovan Mullings), Amy (Melissa Gonzalez) and Steven (Jim Dingevan), who are dissatisfied and unhappy with their jobs.
After brainstorming how they can succeed independently, they come up with the idea of creating their own adult movie.
In order to commit to this plan, they spend hours and hours visiting strip clubs and calling around looking for the perfect actors to hire, and of course some more time is spent to find suitable equipment to use.
Despite the hassle, the trio do end up setting up the ideal spot to shoot an adult movie. However, their clever plan of earning “easy” money quickly takes the wrong turn when one of the actors is unable to show up on filming day...
"My own boss doesn't even know who I am."
Although the plot appears to be pretty straightforward, it is rather the trio’s smaller both panicky and somewhat happy moments which had me interested in watching the movie until the very end.
Although they seem to be very different, they are on the same page in their careers, which is why they come together to start this business.
The movie starts as a smack in the face, knowing how toxic and unreliable the different work industries can be, and the tough reality of scoring a job that you enjoy is quite realistic.
Therefore, it is rather amusing to see people in their late twenties (as it seems), struggling to get their lives together.
The movie comes across as a comedy, but it does contain a lot of action and drama, especially towards the end.
It can be compared to some of the sitcoms we are so familiar with in the way jokes and other funny comments are delivered during serious situations, and it would be the perfect show to potentially binge on Netflix.
It also reminds me of the oh-so famous “Scary Movie” franchise in some aspects of comic humor.
Nonetheless, the plot works quite well as a comedy and will definitely make you laugh for about a good hour and a half.
"What are we doing with our lives?"
When it comes to the characters, I wish we got to see more of them individually.
We do get to meet Steven a little at the start and his clueless personality. He gets himself in trouble after trouble, and it seems like the other two are always there to get him out of messy situations.
He also seems to have a close relationship with his mom, but is perhaps hesitant to show it in front of his friends.
Although we do not see much of Amy on her own, she does come across as a brave and confident person, who almost rules their group of three.
And lastly, Mike seems to be easygoing and fun, and easily convinced. However, there are no character developments (perhaps other than the turnaround at the end), which could simply be because of the length of the movie.
Although some movies tend to get me emotionally attached, this one did not have that impact on me.
It is funny and the perfect watch with a bag of popcorn and soda, but definitely not made to make you cry or reconsider all the decisions you have made in life.
Yet, I must admit that the movie does entail some deeper moments that had me do a double take, particularly during Steven’s first conversation with Bob, a side character that you will meet later on in the movie.
"Can a job get any more degrading than that?"
Aside from that, Always a Grind will definitely keep you entertained if you’re into comedy that portrays the realities of adulthood.
I was totally entertained by this movie and I enjoyed the goofiness of the characters, although it was evident that they were being themselves to the fullest. The movie does contain some graphic content, so it is important you watch it with someone of appropriate age.
Check out Always a Grind on Amazon Prime. Streaming NOW!
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