SZA and Keke Palmer's 'One of Them Days' dazzles critics, hits No. 2 spot at box office

"One of Them Days" arrived in box offices over the weekend on the arm of a hype machine.

Starring Keke Palmer and SZA, the film's mashup of Hollywood and music royalty forms the backdrop for a buddy comedy that borrows from a long tradition of side-by-side slapstick flicks. "One of Them Days" follows two roommates in a mad dash for the cash as they rush to make their rent payment by the end of the day, running into hijinks and hurdles along the way.

Early box office numbers suggest a success so far. The movie, meant to pull in viewers over the holiday weekend, raked in a cool $14 million in its opening four days, per Deadline. With a budget around the same number the project broke even, but did rise to the post of No. 1 comedy in the country and No. 2 overall after "Mufasa." Before its Friday release, Deadline reports the project had a reach of 116.6 million people on social media.

Buoyed partly by SZA's fame, the movie represents the singer's first serious foray into the acting world. Fresh off the release of "Lana," a highly anticipated deluxe version of her "SOS" album, SZA's novice talent pairs well with Palmer, a veteran of the business. Both women have found cult-like internet fame for their quippy one-liners and no-nonsense takes.

Palmer also produced the film in collaboration with "Insecure" creator Issa Rae, another multi-hyphenate in entertainment.

"It felt familiar to me — a story about two girls growing up in an L.A. neighborhood trying to figure out how to make rent, but with all the hijinks and also all the lessons they learned along the way," Palmer told NBC of the project. "It reminded me of the kind of films that I watched growing up about friendship, usually starring two guys, though."

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'One of Them Days': Rotten Tomatoes score is high, critics laud comedy

SZA and Palmer have found easy critical success.

"Lamont and Singleton (the screenwriter and director) effortlessly mix the silly with the sincere," The New York Times critic Natalia Winkelman wrote, "and although 'One of Them Days' favors razzing over heart-to-hearts, our belief in this pairing never wavers. For that, hats off to SZA and especially Palmer, who lights up the screen with starry zeal."

Vulture also offered a glowing review, with film critic Allison Willmore writing, "Honestly, watching 'One of Them Days', you start to wonder why Palmer isn’t one of the biggest stars in the world by now, though part of the problem is that she’s a creature of comedy, and studios barely make them anymore."

"I was charmed by SZA," NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour host Brittany Luse said. "She had a very warm on-screen presence that I was really surprised by. Pleasantly surprised by."

Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie a 96% on the "Tomatometer," its critic score.

So far, the project is being lauded not just for its comedy chops but for it's light but meaningful interrogation of bigger social forces like the paycheck-to-paycheck lifestyle plaguing many Americans and the dangers of gentrification.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SZA, Keke Palmer's 'One of Them Days': Box office success for comedy