I love a good comedy and as Easter Sunday was based on a Filipino American family, I thought it could be fun and different. The movie stars comedian, Jo Koy and it is based on his stand-up comedy. I think that there are a few laughs to be had here, but it is a kind of forgettable movie.
How to Download Easter Sunday (2022)
You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Since Easter Sunday is a Universal Pictures release you can expect to be able to download it at some point from Peacock TV. Click on the Download button at the end of this review to check the current availability.
The Movie Review
Jo Koy plays a single dad called, Joe. Joe is from a pretty crazy Filipino family that lives in the Bay area of California, but he moved to LA to try and become a star. While he had a little bit of success, it has not been easy for Joe and he more often than not does the wrong thing with his son and usually ends up letting him down.
After letting down his son, Junior once again! Joe decides to pick him up and take him to his mother’s house for Easter Sunday which is a big deal in Filipino culture. I liked this part of the movie and the road trip of the dad and son together, with the dad clearly trying to bond with his son was pretty fun.
However, the most fun I had with the movie was the family itself. This family is pretty crazy and I got a real kick out of Joe’s mom and his aunt having this rivalry. By the way, his aunt is played by Tia Carrere an actress I feel like I have not seen in a long time and someone I had a massive crush on back in the 90s!
This loving, but very dysfunctional family is really what the movie is all about and Joe gets pulled right into their drama. His cousin Eugene wanted to start his own business, but in doing so he now owes money to the local gangster called Dev! This leads to a series of amusing events where they try and get the money to pay him off which involves trying to sell a stolen pair of Manny Pacquiao’s boxing gloves.
I really do like the cast; they do actually feel like a real family! As well as a surprise appearance from Tia Carrere, I got a huge kick out of seeing Lou Diamond Phillips in this movie too! He is a guy that should have had a much better career than he did in my opinion. The whole family dynamic is the thing that I liked best about Easter Sunday.
I wish it would have been more about the family drama, to be honest with you. I feel that the whole gangster storyline and Joe being offered a role in a new sitcom is there just to try and add some silly comedy to the movie. Some parts of it are pretty funny, but it feels more like an extended episode of a sitcom than a theatrically released movie.
Easter Sunday is not a terrible movie, but it is a pretty average one. Some of the comedy is good, but for the most part, it kind of feels like it is trying way too hard to be funny. If it comes onto a streaming service you may want to give it a watch. However, I would not recommend going out of your way to watch it.
