You, Me & Her
Mags (writer Selina Ringel, "Single Mother by Choice") and Ash (Ritesh Raja) have been together for 10 years and are now married with a young toddler. He's tended to by au pair Carla (Fiorella Vescovi García) while the increasingly disgruntled Mags runs a private equity firm with her dad (Hernán Mendoza, "Gringo"), trying to support Ash as he tries to get a weed distribution deal finalized (his dad (Gerry Bednob, "The 40-Year-Old Virgin") calls him a drug dealer). Believing he's dotted the i's and crossed the t's on a contract, Ash surprises Mags with a luxury weekend in San Pancho, but things take a surprising turn when Ash finds he's supporting Mags' attraction to another woman in "You, Me & Her."
Laura's Review: C+
Married filmmakers director Dan Levy Dagerman ("Single Mother by Choice") and star/writer Ringel consider how opening a marriage sexually, and more importantly talking about it, may help repair diverging paths and responsibilities. It's an intriguing concept but its resolution fails to convince after one side of the partnership has continually let down the other. The film boasts fine production values with action confined to an L.A. home and Mexican resort town and the actors, especially Sydney Park as the alluring Angela, are not at fault, but "You, Me & Her" only works in fits and starts, its ending unearned.
The introduction of the married couple as both being undermined by their fathers may give the film's screenplay parallel balance, but does nothing to further its theme. What does is the note about an important phone call Ash has ignored, causing Mags to have to make their son's lunch while on a business video call while he's consumed with his weed deal. Once in Mexico, she frets about the expense which he assures her not to worry about and Mags begins to relax, but their acceptance of another couple's invitation to dinner on their first evening there makes little sense. It's immediately obvious to us that Manolo (Roberto Aguire) and Faviola (Marianna Burelli) are swingers, but that comes as a complete surprise to Ash and Mags who end up fleeing the strip club they've been taken to in a panic.
Because Ash seems consumed with either scoring weed or booking snorkeling trips that make him seasick, Mags heads off on her own, joining a yoga class on the beach being run by Angela, a striking woman Mags had noted on their cab ride to the resort. The two women's attraction is palpable, and when the couple spot her later, they invite her for a drink. Getting up onto the dance floor, Mags and Angela exchange a sensuous kiss and far from objecting, Ash seems excited by the possibilities. Alas, Angela's promised text never arrives the next day and the couple, whose own sex life has been rejuvenated by the experience, return home to L.A. But as a panicked Ash attempts to tell Mags that his deal has fallen through, which for some reason means he owes their lawyer friend Ben (Graham Sibley, TV's 2022 'Abraham Lincoln') $20K, Angela arrives in L.A. on a stopover.
The final act is an attempt at classic sex farce that fails to produce any laughs but finally gives Ash a chance to be a little selfless. But considering the problems this family now faces, is that really the cure-all, despite Mags' new determination to let her husband dig himself out of his own problem? Ringel has an appealing presence, a woman in need of a post-partum confidence boost who nonetheless embraces the world with radiant smiles. Raja's Ash is a hapless loser whose appeal lies in his puppyish enthusiasm. The standout, though, is Park whose free-spirited Angela ironically seems to have her feet most firmly planted on the ground.
Those looking for titillation will find little here, the R-rated film relatively tame given its subject matter. "You, Me & Her" is a concept only partially realized.
Robin's Review: C+
Mags (Selina Ringel) and Ash’s (Ritesh Rajan) marriage has hit a wall. She is the breadwinner of the family while he thinks he will be a big time cannabis entrepreneur. They take a long overdue vacation, without their baby, and plan to relax and reconnect once again. Then, the beautiful and free-spirited Angela (Sydney Park) enters the scene and sparks fly in unexpected ways for “Me, You & Her.”
The first problem I have with the story, directed by Dan Levy Dagerman and written by Selina Ringel, is Ash. Within minutes of the start, it was obvious that this was not a partnership marriage but an adult-child relationship. Mags works hard at her business, though her father does not give her the free rein she needs. Ash, on the other hand, is supposed to be the stay at home dad and take care of things, like the baby. Instead, he gets stoned.
Things reach a head and he declares a “special romantic vacation” just for them. Then, his credit card is declined and she must pay for the trip. Once there, his “romantic” plans take a back seat to his scoring pot. Again, he screws things up.
Mags attends a beach yoga session, run by Angela, without her husband, and the two women hit it off and an attraction begins. She tells Ash about the encounter and his reaction is that he may be part of a threesome. Yay! This begins a comedy of errors as he tries to pursue his passion to silly results.
Back to the Ash problem. There is little chemistry between the two members of the married couple but lots between the two woman. IMHO, Mags should have dumped Ash and run off to Tahiti with Angela and the baby. That would have been a more convincing and satisfying outcome.
Two Hands Productions releases "You, Me & Her" in theaters on 2/14/25.
