| Audience: | Adult |
| MPAA Rating: | Rated R for crude and sexual content, and pervasive language. |
| Profanity: | Frequent extremely crude and strong language |
| Nudity/Sex: | Very crude sexual references, explicit sexual situations, adultery, people who do not know each other have sex immediately after meeting |
| Alcohol/Drugs: | Drinking, drug references |
| Violence/Scariness: | Comic violence, fighting |
| Diversity Issues: | None |
| Movie Release Date: | July 25, 2008 |
I have an idea for a movie comedy. A writer-director has a couple of huge hits and so all the Hollywood studio hacks descend on him adoringly. "Give us your ideas," they tell him, "Anything at all! We'll make a deal." So, just to get them to stop pestering him and perhaps also to make a payment on his new boat, he tosses out whatever pops into his head or pulls out some ideas he scribbled in a notebook back when he was in college and they write a big check and then they make the movies.
I promise, that would be a lot funnier than the result of one of those ideas, which is what we have in the latest from Will Ferrell and Judd Apatow. This one would have to sit in the oven for a couple more hours to be considered half-baked. Despite the success of "Superbad" and "Knocked Up," every movie about a childish boy-man who occasionally bawls "I love you man!" to his best friend is not entertaining.
As Will Ferrell gets older, the characters he plays get mentally younger. Here he is a 40-year-old man who lives with his mother and acts like he is 5. When his mother gets married to a man who also has a 40-year-old son living at home (John C. Reilly) the two of them instantly hate each other, then become devoted friends. It's like "The Brady Bunch" crossed with "My Fair Brady" and a little bit of "Breaking Bonaduce." Except not as good. Ferrell and director Adam McKay founded the acclaimed "Funny or Die" website. On this movie, I vote "die."
Buddy movies generally work best when the characters have distinct personalities that create contrast and conflict. They don't have to be likable but they do have to have some reason to get us on their side. But here the two emotionally and intellectually childish step brothers are so similar and so unappealing that we may not root for the (actual) child bullies who taunt and torture them but we can certainly see their point.
Parents should know that this film has constant extremely crude humor, very explicit sexual references and situations, pornography, drug references, drinking, very strong language used by adults and children, brief very explicit nudity, comic violence including beating up children
Family discussion: Is it funny to see adult men act like children? Why did Dale and Brennan change their minds about each other? Why did their parents let them stay at home?
If you like this, try: "Anchorman" and "Walk Hard"
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Thanks so much, Rebekah! "Stranger than Fiction" is one of my favorite films of the past 10 years. Ferrell was terrific and I loved Dustin Hoffman! I think people as successful as Ferrell are under a lot of pressure to repeat themselves; after all a lot of money is at stake and it seems like a sure bet. But your analogy to Carrey is a good one -- and for a cautionary tale, Ferrell should try to avoid what has happened to Eddie Murphy.
I really appreciate your post and if your boyfriend sees the movie, let me know what he thinks!
"Kocked Up"? Typo...or Freudian slip?
;) Very funny! Probably both. Thanks for the correction! Remember, ten corrections and you get a copy of my book!
Nell.
I noticed in your review you did include that there is graphic nudity. However, in the main reviews I have been seeing as well as at the top of your review ,where it says rated "R," it does not mention nudity. Is there a reason for that ? Thanks
Thanks, Tim. I can put more detail in the review than in the shorthand summaries on top so it is always advisable to read both.
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