You-Haul-It takes the timeworn jokes about lesbians instantly moving in together and turns them on their head by tracing the dissolution of a same-sex romance through the status of their shared storage unit. Rachel (Maggie Baker), a cheerful ex-cheerleader with a future in fashion editing, has been with her non-binary performer paramour Jade (Elizabeth Thornton) for more than five years, but the pair are forced to put their furniture into a graffiti-strewn garage when the COVID-19 crisis forces them back home with their respective parents. Pandemic-induced financial pressures, compounded by substance abuse and career opportunities, conspire to pull the couple apart as their traumas pile up like a Gen Z Afterschool Special.
Writer-director Megan Lauren Williams' new domestic drama, which seems to be both made for and mocking directionless 20-somethings, shows potential from the very start, thanks to compellingly naturalistic acting by both leads. As this kitchen(less) sink drama descends, it becomes uncomfortably similar to watching a dysfunctional couple argue in real life, only with overbearing background music, but without the benefit of being able to yell at them to just break up already. With an ending determined to extinguish all hope, the only lesson seemingly to be learned here is to carefully label your boxes when moving.
Powerful performances and a pitch-black outlook on love make You-Haul-It a perfect pick for plunging yourself into a deep depression; whether that’s a positive or negative all depends on you.
Tickets and show info: You-Haul-It
