In the Blindspotting-wannabe drama-comedy Emergency, a group of college friends make a series of poor decisions after discovering what has happened to us all in college: finding a girl passed out on the floor, simmering in a puddle of her own puke.

At play here is that two of the friends are Black and the third is Latino… and the heavily intoxicated (drugged?) girl is white. You could simply call the cops, but what would they think? They could take her to the hospital, but same situation. 

Let the digging begin.

Donald Watkins and RJ Cyler are the perfect pair, best friends with different outlooks on life, and by proxy perspectives on what the fuck they should do when you find a white girl breathing in her own vomit. They represent a clash of morals and self preservation, played for both dramatic and comedic effect.

Smartly written by KD Davila and directed by Carey Williams, Emergency hits on serious themes while largely remaining within the framework of a college comedy. Williams blends genres while remaining relatively lighthearted, though the movie’s inconsistency in and frankly inability to generate real laughs holds it back from being much more than a trip to your everyday pediatrician. Emergency doesn’t need to be hilarious, nor should it be, but you can tell the filmmakers were aiming for something they don’t quite achieve.

Still, there’s enough to like here. Beyond Watkins and Cyler, Sebastian Chacon, Maddie Nichols, and Sabrina Carpenter are all great in their respective roles. The movie’s message is sound, and it has bursts of cleverness that’ll bring a smile to your face.

It’s no Blindspotting, even if it wants to be, but Emergency has enough charm and character to win you over. I just wouldn’t rush out to see it.

This movie was reviewed as part of our coverage of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. 

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.