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So many books and movies are built around the story of a normal, everyday character who decides to investigate a crime—often with hilarious results. But the crime comedy Drugstore June plods its way through an awkward investigation with an indifferent 20-something with too much time on her hands.
Drugstore June stars Esther Povitsky as an aspiring influencer who lives at home with her parents and younger brother and spends her days eating ice cream and cheeseburgers and obsessing about her ex-boyfriend, Davey (Haley Joel Osment). Sometimes she also shows up for work at the local pharmacy—but only if she feels like it. When the pharmacy is robbed and her lovable boss is a suspect, June decides to take matters into her own hands and track down the thief who trashed the store. But her ill-advised investigation leads straight into chaos and danger.
June bumbles her way to dive bars and dispensaries, searching for information that will lead her to the culprit—only to end up in the middle of another robbery. It’s just one mishap after another for June. With some characters, that might be entertaining—but the problem here is that nothing about this amateur sleuth is even the slightest bit likable. June embodies pretty much everything that older generations find irritating about today’s teens and young adults. She’s lazy, entitled, and self-absorbed—and she’s just not very bright. She’s obsessed with her looks and her followers—and she believes that everyone else finds the minute details of her everyday life absolutely riveting.
As June sets out in search of answers, there are moments in her adventure that may give viewers some hope that this character may eventually become just slightly more self-aware—but that’s the most that you can hope for this maddening character. Fortunately, some of the supporting characters are more likable—like her long-suffering boss, Billy (Bobby Lee), who’s so much more patient and supportive than she deserves. And Beverly D’Angelo steals every one of her scenes as June’s adorably well-meaning mom. But, in the end, not much can really save this clumsy mess of a whodunit.
While the story of a clever young woman investigating a small-town crime sounds like it could be promising, Drugstore June puts this amateur investigation in the hands of a character who’s neither clever nor likable. And that makes it about as entertaining as 90 minutes spent watching teenagers try to dance on TikTok.
You can join June’s investigation when Drugstore June arrives in select theaters on February 23, 2024.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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