"7 Days" a funny, charming pandemic-set comedy

7 Days (2022)

Movies about, or just set around, COVID-19 don’t seem to becoming a relic anytime soon. By refreshing a first-date, opposites-attract formula where our two leads are forced to stay inside together, the character-based, Duplass brothers-produced romantic comedy “7 Days” makes for an endearingly DIY experiment. Even if we have an inkling of how things will turn out, what matters most are the details and the characters, and Karan Soni (2019's "Corporate Animals") and Geraldine Viswanathan (2020's "The Broken Hearts Gallery") make perfect foils for one another. 

It’s March 2020, and two Indian-American singletons are about to have a very awkward first date. Not only did their old-fashioned Indian mothers make them dating profiles and arrange the date, but with the pandemic changing everything, Ravi (Karan Soni) and Rita (Geraldine Viswanathan) meet in an empty reservoir for a picnic, sitting six feet apart with masks covering their noses and mouths. After they lie to their parents that the date went smoothly, Rita invites Ravi back to her house, where the real Rita comes out: she’s unemployed, she does eat meat, and she does drink alcohol. Oh, and she’s still talking to an older married man she calls “Daddy” (voiced by Mark Duplass). When Ravi’s Uber car gets canceled as the world is quickly shutting down, Rita has no other choice than to let him stay and quarantine with her. 

Co-star Karan Soni co-wrote the script with life partner and writer-director (and oncologist) Roshan Sethi, and the cultural specificity at the center of “7 Days” puts another refreshing spin on this intimate story. Ravi and Rita don’t really make sense as a couple, existing in different extremes and not having anything in common. That, of course, is where a lot of the humor arises from, but Soni and Sethi’s script also doesn’t keep them rigidly in their one lane. Ravi is very strict in finding a young woman who shares the same values, but even if Rita isn’t that, they might bring out the best in each other — and actually care about one another during this unconventional situation, especially if one of them gets sick.

While one could initially find Ravi a little insufferable, Karan Soni makes his character’s insecurities and uptight personality rather adorable. All it takes is a little alcohol and Ravi is doing bad stand-up and his specialty impersonation of a “misogynistic Indian uncle.” Geraldine Viswanathan’s delivery is natural, her way with a line always unexpected, and her Rita (once realizing she can't lie with a beer in one hand and fried chicken in the other) is unafraid to be her bawdy, messy, carefree, untraditional self. She’s more willing to just chill out and do nothing compared to Ravi, who needs to clean when he’s anxious. 

Shot in only 8 days during 2020, “7 Days” is acceptably made and uses its production limitations to the fullest. The bookending Zoom testimonials of Indian couples who married through arranged meetings definitely bring a timeliness but also a timelessness reminiscent of "When Harry Met Sally...," which never hurts. Somehow, with these two engaging performances, the experience never feels static or monotonously talky. It's all about the back-and-forth between Ravi and Rita, and Soni and Viswanathan making them both grow incrementally is a joy to witness. When the stakes are heightened and the situation gets more serious, the film does struggle a bit in shifting tones and almost feels like a misstep. Considering that quibble doesn't occur until very late into the film, “7 Days” has already built up more than enough goodwill without detracting from the film. This is a charming and funny gem that will someday feel like a time capsule.

Grade: B

Cinedigm is releasing “7 Days” (86 min.) in theaters on March 25, 2022.