When a parent or spouse is revealed to have a secret identity, it’s supposed to be a game changer. The information invites a total recalibration of the relationship. Trish Sie’s uninspired action-comedy “The Sleepover,” now streaming on Netflix, follows this formula superficially, but never grounds the reveal, or its consequences, in much emotional truth. Without that core believability, the kidnapping of Margot (Malin Akerman), a former jewel thief and current domesticated mother, never upends the family’s dynamics convincingly because her life has so little detail. He’s presented not only as ordinary to a point of mockery but also as the film’s source of its wackiest attempted jokes.

Source: New York Times August 21, 2020 06:56 UTC