08.04.08 REVIEWS: STEP BROTHERS
Watch the trailer here, I don’t really do summary.
Okay, first things first: this movie is really funny. No matter how stale you think Will Ferrell’s act is, or how tired you are of the man-child comedy genre, you will laugh hard and often through at least the first forty minutes. They don’t always have the material, but Ferrell and John C. Reilly are two of the best comedic actors working, and the two of them together are more than the sum of their parts. Mary Steenburgen and Richard Jenkins, who play Ferrell and Reilly’s parents, have turned in plenty of fine acting performances and they do okay here, but the drop in comedic tension whenever Ferrell and Reilly aren’t onscreen is palpable. They just blow everyone else off the screen, like your mother at a truck stop.
And yes, the jokes are juvenile. John C. Reilly farts in a job interview. Will Ferrell rubs what appears to be his actual, hairy nutsack on Reilly’s drum set. But these guys are good at juvenile, and the way they do it, there’s a certain magic to it. And I’m not apologizing because if I ever stop laughing at a really well-timed fart joke, just put me in the ground because I’m already dead.
The main issue I question in Step Brothers is: is a traditional movie really the right format for this kind of comedy? Director Adam McKay, who wrote the script with Ferrell and Reilly, excels at capturing chunks of hilarity that can be anywhere from one to ten minutes long. We’re willing to accept any kind of strung together plot, unbelievable characters, and a completely inconsistent level of realism for about 40 minutes, but at some point, and no one’s figured a way around it, there has to be a third act, and that kind of requires a story. God, I hate playing the dad.
Even the stupidest comedies – Tommy Boy, Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, Wedding Crashers – have enough of a story and real, well, consistent enough characters to push us through that inevitable lull that happens when we realize that no matter how much fun we’re having, somehow the movie has to go beyond the premise. McKay, Ferrell, and Reilly’s approach is so divorced from plot and story (it’s more a series of vignettes) that the last fifth or so of the movie is just… excess. At some point you just can’t help thinking, “So are these guys just gonna keep dicking around or what?”
They make a half-hearted attempt at wrapping up the story and it’s not a total failure – it’s kind of cute. But to produce an unqualified success, these guys need to A. Sit down and actually write something with a compelling enough through line that it works as a 90-minute plus movie, or B. Challenge the traditional movie length and/or structure enough to make it work for them. That said, I’d probably be willing to watch another valiant-but-failed attempt if it makes me laugh this much.
Grade: B
![[image]](http://cdn.fd.uproxx.com/wp-content/thumbnails/130/110/2009/11/newmoon-stewart-lautner-150x150.jpg)
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There are 26 comments about:
REVIEWS: STEP BROTHERS
Semi-Pro and Blades of Glory both had a "plot" and weren’t necessarily very funny.
B.K. - I loved Blades of Glory. It had a stalker, a porn star, a child prodigy, alcoholism (which is ALWAYS funny), sex addiction, abandonment, delusions of granduer and most of all, it had a sexually ambiguous male character.
Maybe I loved it so much because it’s pretty much my life story.
Excuse me, I have to go cut myself again.
Did Sexman let LaVince borrow his "film critic" hat?
He should have borrowed yours instead, because that thing is awesome.
solid review
I didn’t say I didn’t enjoy Blades of Glory. Just saying it wasn’t necessarily shit-yourself funny.
Agreed, B.K. - I shit myself for a completely different reason.
Yeah, I get that a lot L.H. Does this movie have any good naked titties in it? Comedies are better if they have some naked titties thrown in. I mean, you can laugh at retards down at the mall for free, but if I’m paying $10 bucks I better see some naked titties.
John Wayne - You’d pay $10 to see a retard’s titties?
You’re sick man. Sick.
The retard chick thinks you’re giving them $10, but in actuality it’s just a handfull of McDonalds ketchup packets and napkins, but tards don’t know the difference so it’s totally cool.
I loved this movie. I thought what was supposed to be the ending was perhaps an apex of retarded hilarity, especially the lumberjack and centaur scenes. No other comedians today can pull this off so I continue to give my kudos to Mr. Ferrell, so long as he’s done with sports movies.
Speaking of retards, The Ringer was surprisingly good. It was funny AND it had a plot.
Burnsy!!!! How about throwing out a SPOILER ALERT!!!
CENTAURS??!!
LUMBERJACKS???!!!
This movie sounds like it has it all.
I need a moment. Excuse me.
I mean, retards making fun of retards: fish in a barrel.
Retards making fun of other retards: gold.
Take away one "retards" in that statement.
Give me a break, I’m like the only one fucking off at work today.
I remember thinking just about the time the man-boy act was starting to get tiresome, they turned on the story to push things forward. This movie had way less plot than Talladega Nights, but was easily twice as funny. Basically, I agree with everything that Vince said about the movie. If you disagree then you better not get in my face, because I will drop you, motherfucker.
What makes it funny is that they’re grown men acting like children! And they’re not even brothers in real life! - Glen from Oregon
Also thought it was a lot funnier than Talladega Nights. The centaur scene was pretty sweet, and the lumberjack thing was probably my favorite scene.
What this movie needed was that Justin Long guy. He makes everything funnier.
Sean, I just want you to know that the cancer…it’s back.
Shut up, Grandma. Accepted time is quiet time.
And, come on, a chick peed standing up. Case closed.
Lince-good review, but it won’t change His mind on (not) seeing this movie. Just because something might make Him laugh, it wouldn’t necessitate the fact that He is enjoying it.
Like when His wife farts when He is going down on her.Yeah, ummm . . . I haven’t seen this yet. Can we talk about something else? How’s about that Dark Knight, eh?
Alrighty then, something new to talk about. New W . . . order up!
I saw a special on Starz about this and about Pineapple Express a few nights ago. I can honestly tell you that before seeing those shows, I had no intention of watching either one. Now, I think they both could be pretty damned funny. Maybe Will hasn’t completely Dursted just yet.
Is there a scene where the older step brother makes the younger one jerk him off for months before he finally asks him to put his mouth on it instead and then the younger one decides he isn’t going to do that and stabs the older one in the eye with a pen knife? Or is that just a memory flash i had?
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