‘Bubble & Squeak’ Review: What’s an Absurd Comedy Without Much Actual Humor?

It starts intriguingly enough: An American couple (Himesh Patel and Sarah Goldberg) wait anxiously in a dowdy customs office in an unnamed Slavic country. They’ve just arrived for their honeymoon — Declan (Patel), we’re told, wanted the pair to enjoy a vacation somewhere “off the beaten path” and economical, Delores (Goldberg) doesn’t seem to have much pull in the matter — and are being held in official custody, believed to have already violated one of the major laws of their destination by smuggling in contraband. The law in question is beyond silly (this seems to be the bulk of the gag at hand), but filmmaker Evan Twohy’s concept for his debut film “Bubble & Squeak” is original enough to engender plenty of audience goodwill and patience, at least at first.

It’s about cabbages. Again: cabbages. And get ready to hear the word “cabbages” innumerable times over the film‘s 95 minute running time. Cabbages. Cabbages! Isn’t that funny? While Declan can’t believe the treatment they’re receiving in regards to this matter, first from a mannered Steven Yeun as a customs officer, and later from his crazy boss (Matt Berry, playing an unholy mash-up of Wes Anderson and Werner Herzog), it soon becomes apparent to the audience why they’ve been held by government brass. Care of one of the film’s truly inspired sight gags, it’s unmissable: Delores’ pants are absolutely bursting with cabbages.

Inevitably, the question will arise: Even without the fear of breaking the law, why the hell would anyone head off on their honeymoon with dozens of heads of cabbage stashed in their pants? This question will never be answered, as Twohy attempts to use Delores’ cabbage-smuggling and Declan’s can-fix-anything attitude to highlight the glaring differences in their personalities. Can you ever really know anyone, the film seems to muse, especially your spouse? But, blinkered by a film too mannered to be funny and too messy to say anything with clarity, it’s one of many tossed-out concepts that never stick and rarely elicit a laugh.

Declan, ever-practical and seemingly in possession of endless factoids about the unnamed country (Twohy shot in Estonia) from a handy travel guide, pushes the pair to escape custody, flee to the forest, and attempt to make their way to safety over whichever border they can find soonest. Patel and Goldberg seem fully committed to the bit — even though Goldberg doesn’t spend the majority of the film with actual cabbages in her pants, she does spend most of it traipsing their lush woods with a bunch of round items down her khakis, you don’t do that just for the paycheck — and a brief, very funny Dave Franco appearance smacks of that same dedicated spirit.

It sure looks like everyone on the screen is having fun, but what about the audience watching them ham it up?

Twohy’s absurdism seems to be poking fun at the most obvious of institutions: you’re telling me laws can feel arbitrary, social mores vary, and marriage is a bizarre institution? Developed over nearly two decades — initially spawned by a single joke which involved into a stage play and then into the film — Twohy seems to have long ago lost the thread of what “Bubble & Squeak” was really trying to say and the inventive ways he might say it.

Much like the cabbage and potato dish from which it takes its title, “Bubble & Squeak” feels like a mishmash of spare parts from other, more original films. The real problem here? This final product isn’t particularly comforting or filling, even if we sometimes get a taste of a truly special flavor.

Grade: C+

“Bubble & Squeak” premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. It is currently seeking U.S. distribution.

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