SXSW Review: Judd Apatow's 'Trainwreck' With Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, Tilda Swinton, John Cena, LeBron James, More

You notice a change: when the camera rests in Judd Apatow’s “Trainwreck” for an extended beat, it retains a sense of the character in the frame, rather than just highlighting a mid-riff improvised quip that made the cut. Or, perhaps, in the ten years since his directorial debut and the start of an empire, Apatow has refined his process into a seamless manner. Or, more likely, he’s been handed a gift in the form of Amy Schumer, starting with her focused, warm script that retains her comedic DNA, and continuing with a lead performance that’s utterly watchable in a sea of watchable performances.

At the very least, “Trainwreck” will go down as the film that unveiled John Cena and LeBron James as surprise comedic talents, and also the one that let Tilda Swinton — playing an unrecognizable, eyeliner-heavy English magazine boss — snarl to Schumer’s character, “I wouldn’t fuck him with your dick.” Those three actors really showcase the height of big-budget studio access and creative...