Director Trish Sie has beautifully adapted Audrey Shulman’s novel and effectively brought the characters of Yara Shahidi and Odessa A'zion to life, resulting in a heartwarming slice-of-life film
Last Updated: 08.33 PM, Sep 07, 2023
Story
Corinne and Jane are childhood friends who live and work together in Los Angeles. While Corinne is the life of the party, Jane is an introvert who is a gifted baker. Corinne convinces Jane to commit to a year of baking cakes and taking them to bars in an attempt to meet men. The friends go through some life-altering changes. Will Jane be able to continue ‘cakebarring’ despite the many challenges she and Corinne face that year?
Review
Sitting in Bars with Cake is an adaptation of a novel of the same name by Audrey Shulman that is based on a real story. What begins as a frivolous exercise in meeting people turns into a moving tale of friendship, love, and loss.
Jane (Yara Shahidi) and Corinne (Odessa A'zion) are best friends who are as different as night and day. While Corinne is dancing on bar tops, Jane is unable to even face her office crush, Owen (Rish Shah). On Corinne’s birthday, Jane, who is a talented baker, walks into a bar with a cake she baked for her best friend. Corinne stumbles upon an innovative way for Jane to meet people and increase her confidence when she sees men make a beeline for her cake.
Thus begins a year-long ‘cakebarring’ plan, which is basically Jane, Corinne, and a couple of their friends mapping out different bars in Los Angeles that they plan on visiting to give out free cake that Jane bakes with the sole aim of helping her meet and hookup with men. They even have an elaborate plan of this pasted on a wall in the home that Corinne and Jane share, with a results column to determine how well the plan is going.
With each outing, Jane meets new people, her confidence increases, and the results vary from d*ck pics, free drinks, dancing, to making out. Everything is going great until Corinne collapses and is diagnosed with a life-threatening brain tumour. Jane becomes her caretaker, and the friends decide to continue ‘cakebarring’ as a means of providing a welcome distraction for Corinne from her treatment.
As Corinne’s health fails, Jane decides to continue cakebarring and cover the 50 bars, which was part of the initial year-long plan charted out by Corinne. Jane resumes taking cakes to bars, brings souvenirs to Corinne in the hospital. But the purpose of the activity has undergone a massive change since it started.
The last stop on the plan is exactly one year since it began, on Corinne’s birthday. But this time, it is an emotional moment. Jane bakes her best friend’s birthday cake, but under very different circumstances.
Cakebarring and Corinne help Jane in ways that she never could have imagined, helping her become true to herself and live a fulfilled life.
Verdict
At it’s core, Sitting in Bars with Cake is a story about two friends and their undying love for each other. Given the basic premise and the cinematic twists and turns, it may take some convincing to believe that this is a true story. But the fact that it is true is what really works for the film.
Yara Shahidi and Odessa A'zion as Jane and Corinne are a treat to watch together. Odessa lights up the screen and effortlessly pulls off the easy, cool-girl vibe. Yara is convincing as the introverted Jane, who has an almost motherly love for her best friend.
Ron Livingston as Corinne's father, Fred, is a great pick, as is Rish Shah as Owen, Jane's office crush. Bette Midler as Corinne's boss, Benita, feels underused, though.
Director Trish Sie has beautifully adapted the novel and effectively brought the characters to life, resulting in a heartwarming slice of life film that is an easy watch. It’s interesting to see how the meaning of taking cakes to bars changes as the lives of the two protagonists change and the impact of the new meaning on them.
Watch this one with a warm mug of coffee (or tea or hot chocolate) and some slices of cake with your bestie.