Zac Efron and Nicole Kidman in Netflix rom-com

It could all be a fever dream, or a buzzing hallucination. There are ideas that collide with each other like white wine is raw — let’s be real, it’s a twist — and “A Family Affair” opens with real-life Zac Efron purple carpet pictures of the actor at TIFF . Although this isn’t TMZ, it could be a scripted Netflix rom-com. And we worship it.

Directed by “Beautiful Creatures” director Richard LaGravenese from a script by Cary Solomon, “A Family Affair” reunites Efron with her “The Paper Boy” co-star Nicole Kidman, and each woman plays Joey King in a Offers to make different and more. Less unconventional love triangle. Both Efron and King’s characters just want Kidman to be a supportive mother figure: one as her unediting mother, and the other as a mother.

King plays Zara, the 24-year-old daughter of Kidman’s famous novelist persona, Brooke. Since Zara wants to be a Hollywood agent, she’s literally stuck in a world of increasingly frequent visitors in the present day, catering to the every whim of her A-list actor boss Chris Cole (Efron). It’s Zara who brings the jewelery Chris forgot at his departure, a signature advance where he presents his love interest with some earrings – and not the engagement ring they’re expecting – before kicking them out. First.

Chris is a heartbreaker, and Zara’s shock when this happens to Chris and her personal mother later is quite understandable. No video games here: Chris is well aware of the fact that Brooke is Zara’s mother, and Zara is already aware of Chris’s desire to woo her mother or father. And the inadequacy of the actual fight, other than Zara worrying that Chris will inevitably reward Brooke for preparing her own Adios earrings, is where “A Family Affair” falters.

King doesn’t unleash her full acting skills, which audiences learned from her harrowing portrayal of Gypsy Rose Blanchard in the Emmy-winning “The Act,” and her zany persona feels like she belongs in a different movie. “A Family Affair” can’t decide whether it’ll be a coming-of-age story with Zara at its heart, or the story of a middle-aged girl reclaiming herself after becoming an unwed mother or father. Will happen. While theoretically attempting to bridge the generational divide creates a lofty narrative, “A Family Affair” lacks the nuance to do both well. And so, despite King’s inherent charm, it is his story that fails. It’s hard to stand in opposition to Kidman and Efron.

Efron’s Chris is a perfect blend of motion hero celebrity and delicate man-child, a perfect blend of Brooke to mom. Chris is best known for his “Icarus Rush” franchise, which also lands him on the viral talk show “Hot Ones.” But this was followed by years of starring as the lead character Chris in the “Icarus” motion pictures. Negative thoughts about who Icarus is, Brooke charmed him with her knowledge of ornate mythology. Their dating is as ordinary as it gets only for Brooke to understand more than that. The couple frolic in the backlot I’m Ready and even have a “Big Fat Liar”-like dress-up scene that provides a way for Chris to deliver a monologue about finding fame as a young man. Efron’s Chris appears to be a meta-commentary on his personal career about typecasting, being in the industry for most of his life, and much more. It even gives us Efron making out with Cher’s “Do You Believe in Love After Love,” a pastiche that would have to rival Kidman’s AMC commercials to break the web.

“A Family Affair” is really Efron’s movie, which gets better and worse at times. And the component moment fits appropriately with the new pattern of whole romance. There’s no doubt that it’s in the air for widows and divorcees to find love again, as Efron and Cher belt out. But “A Family Affair” doesn’t even really stand up to “The Idea of ​​You” (which has already morphed into a kind of rom-com genre), nor does it ever take advantage of the comparison. Also seems condemnable. Like “May in December” or Catherine Brillette’s “Last Summer.” The plot here is very serviceable for this kind of sexuality, but it creates negative hesitations, yet resonates with audiences of a certain moment, given the fact that both Kidman and Efron use it in their “The Idea of ​​You ” is also done by opposite numbers. It doesn’t hurt that Kathy Bates is strong as the mother of Kidman’s estranged writer girlfriend, a clever nod to her iconic turn in “Misery.”

And while “A Family Affair’s” Academy Awards prospects are decidedly 0, it’s still a pretty reminder of how much the rom-com world has ignored Oscar nominee Zac Efron — because let’s face it, “The Iron Claw” was snubbed during awards season in 2023. With “A Family Affair,” Efron has dropped “17 Again,” and it’s proud to see this former teen heartthrob in action again. Despite the streamer’s mistakes, Netflix has a knack for helping favorite actors return to their former glory, and Efron makes the most of his presence to shine.

Ranking: B-

“A Family Affair” can be presented on Netflix Foundation on Friday, June 28,