“That Awkward Moment,” starring Zac Efron, Miles Teller, and Michael B. Jordan, chronicles the promise three young guys make to stay single as an act of solidarity. Inevitably breaking the pact and lying to each other (not helping to bond their friendship), the characters proved to me something I already knew: boys can be really stupid.

While the premise of the movie is smart, putting a spin on the rom-com chick flick by giving it the point of view of a guy, “That Awkward Moment” is as predictable as most of its rom-com predecessors.

The main character, Jason (Efron), is the stereotypical hipster/playboy who avoids commitment for no other reason than because he can. Efron is as pretty as ever and can handle his brief somewhat awkward comedic bits, but struggles with relaying deep human emotion – that is unless the camera gets so close to his eyes you may believe he is tearing up. The character is basically guilting his friends into staying single until he realizes his stupidity, which makes it difficult for me to root for him the way you should root for the main character when he sees the error in his ways.

When Jason struggles to keep the pact himself after meeting the quirky Ellie (Imogen Poots), he chooses to ignore her when she is facing tragedy because he doesn’t want to seem committed to her in any way. Poots is charming and fresh, but chemistry between her and Efron seems forced. I again have a hard time seeing any emotion from Efron and don’t see where his revelation that she is “the one” comes from.

Jason’s sidekick best friend Daniel (Tiller) was a huge help in the comedic department of the movie, bringing some of the “awkward” that the film might have otherwise lacked. Reminding me of a cute and lovable, but equally as naive, puppy, Daniels’ relationship with sultry and unique Chelsea (Mackenzie Davis) also seems hard to believe.

Mikey (Jordan), the doctor who married young, has recently watched his relationship with his wife fall to shambles. The most reasonable and level-headed of the three, the character was not often a participant in the few comedic bits. There is really nothing much to say about the character or the actor’s performance. Like the movie itself, his performance is fine, but not memorable. 
The title of the film seems ill-fitting, considering that after the movie ended I had a hard time remembering what the “awkward moments” actually were. Sure there were some small awkward encounters, mostly stemming from something inappropriate or borderline gross, but not nearly enough to constitute the marketing of the movie around such moments.

For a relatively low-budget film, there were some highlights, including the location. Taking place in the streets, bars, apartments, and coffee shops of New York City, the film gained authenticity from its scenery. As the characters stroll through New York City streets, fake coffees in hand, they seem the most down to earth. You can almost see why the outrageous way they think they should live their lives makes sense to them… kind of.

Another standout in the movie is the soundtrack. A blend of indie singles and an electronic sounding score with and 80s feel, it compliments the setting better than the actors do at times. For a brief moment, Davis even croons and plays a jazz style piece on the piano in the local bar, which is enjoyable, even though slightly out of place.

If you are a fan of rom-coms, a genre known for its predictability, you will enjoy the film. It wasn’t a waste of my time or money, it just wasn’t anything to write home about. Most of the funniest bits were given away in the movie trailer, but the banter between characters, more inappropriate than witty, was enjoyable and the situations the characters found themselves in were amusing, though avoidable. It was easy to watch, but if you think about the plot too hard you will just end up confused because the plot is as superficial as it appears.

Karly Horn is an A&E Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.