30-year-old Samantha Abbott (Cobie Smulders) looks like she has it all, a doting live-in boyfriend, a nice house in the suburbs, and a steady job as a high school teacher at an inner-city Chicago school. As news circulates that the school will be closing due to budget cuts, Samantha seems relieved to be able to pursue another, more fulfilling job at a local museum. She soon finds, however, that her plans must now take a back seat when she realizes she is pregnant.
Instead of embracing this news, like her boyfriend John (Anders Holm) does, Samantha is anything but optimistic. She continues to teach despite the ever present morning sickness, which does get the better of her one day as she ends up puking in front of the entire class. But it is then that she notices another pregnancy in her classroom. A high school senior Jasmine (Gail Bean), who is one of her most promising students.
The result is a special bond that forms between Samantha and Jasmine that far succeeds the typical student/teacher relationship. From prenatal yoga to sharing milkshakes, they embark on the journey of unplanned pregnancy together, sharing their concerns, their surprises, and their joy.
As far as performances go, Smulders does a fine job of working with the material she was given.
While the premise is interesting, Unexpected, a film from director Kris Swanberg, lacks conflict from the very beginning, leaving our protagonist, Samantha, extremely flat. There is no real backstory to her character and she goes through virtually no real struggles, yet we are supposed to feel sympathy for her? Sure the pregnancy was unplanned, but her boyfriend is overtly supportive, literally proposing to her over a pancake breakfast the day after he learns the news. And from the looks of her “danish modern” furnished apartment, Samantha appears to be sitting comfortably in the middle class.
If there is anyone we should feel sympathy for it’s Jasmine, a pregnant teenager whose boyfriend left her, and who spends her nights working in a grocery store to help her family. With the support of Samantha, Jasmine even pursues college and her drive is commendable, while Samantha on the other hand, complains that her pregnancy is holding her back from her “dream job,” and claims that she does not want her identity to be “Only somebody’s wife and mother.” It’s doubtful that the film’s intention was to spotlight the stark contrast between the class difference and racial treatment in Chicago, but that is exactly what it does. In this film, the ironic phrase “White People Problems” rings true in a cringe-worthy way.
As far as performances go, Smulders does a fine job of working with the material she was given. Had there been more depth to the script, I’m sure she would have given Samantha more layers. Holms has very limited screen time, but what he does bring is solid. Ultimately, the biggest fail seems to be the script, and as we know, one cannot have a good film without a good screenplay. Expect Unexpected to have a limited shelf life.
Unexpected opens at Sundance Cinemas and the Laemmle Playhouse 7 this Friday.
