Review: Role Models


Paul Rudd (a glum, cynical type) and Seann William Scott (a Seann William Scott type) are a couple of ne’er-do-wells who get into serious trouble when on one of their usual trips to schools promoting a crappy energy drink called Minotaur. Rudd, depressed after his cynicism causes his relationship with lawyer Elizabeth Banks to end, pretty much goes postal their latest promotional visit, resulting in he and Scott being thrown in jail. Facing jail time, they are thrown a life-line; volunteering at Sturdy Wings, a group that matches emotionally needy/troubled kids with adult ‘mentors’. It’s a place run by a sarcastic, possibly insane former drug addict Gayle Sweeney (Jane Lynch), who seems to forget her point about halfway through a sentence but keeps on going anyway. Scott is paired up with a foul-mouthed, breast-obsessed 10 year-old (Bobb’e J. Thompson), whilst the cynical Rudd is paired with uber-geek Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who likes to escape in a world of Live Action Role Playing games, specifically the medieval-set Laire. Ken Marino and Kerri Kenney-Silver play Mintz-Plasse’s completely unsupportive, ignorant parents, whilst Ken Jeong turns up as a snotty ‘king’ in the Laire game.



I didn’t have very high hopes for this 2008 David Wain (the uneven “Wet Hot American Summer”) comedy. I figured it would get too schmaltzy (as films with similar storylines tend to, like “Bustin’ Loose”), and I didn’t even laugh too much at the trailer. The film’s tedious opening moments (Rudd’s coffee shop meltdown might’ve been funny to some, but this non-coffee drinker didn’t even get the joke. I’ve never heard of ‘venti’) didn’t make me think that my suspicions were going to be unwarranted, as indeed Scott, and especially the glum Rudd were not pleasant company to be around. Well thank god for an excellent supporting cast then (who bring out the best moments in the two leads, especially Thompson), because after this dull beginning, this film ended up being pretty darn funny, and hey, I even bought into its schmaltzy message at the end of the day. Lynch’s bizarro schtick goes so amusingly overboard and bizarre that it reaches incredible heights (A former drug addict, she almost seems proud and dismissive at the same time. When she tells Scott and Rudd ‘Why don't you lay out two lines of your selfishness, which is your blow, draw the shades, take the phone off the hook, grab a straw, and snort!’ one has to wonder if it’s just her schtick or if she’s subliminally jonesing for some drugs!), whilst Thompson proves that swearing kids are just plain freakin’ funny (sorry, but they are!). His monologue about boobies (the least profane thing in the film, likely) still has me chortling right now. And his role manages to be serious and funny at the same time. For instance, when he accuses Scott of molesting him (‘Honky wanted a fistful of my balls!’) he’s not just providing an hysterically funny (and oh, so wrong!) moment, but the kid really does have trust issues with adult figures. Mintz-Plasse (Forever going to be McLovin to you and me) steals the show though, and is the heart of the film. He’s likeable, funny, and y’know what? This film’s right, there’s a lot weirder and more harmful obsessions out there than Live Action Role Playing games. Only Banks really misses out as the ‘girl’ and the ‘lawyer’, two functionary parts rolled into one, and not terribly funny.



Overall, this one snuck up on me, it’s often genuinely funny, though it helps if you’re not a prude. Scripted by Rudd, Marino (both of whom were in “Wet Hot American Summer”), Wain, and Timothy Dowling, I actually had a pretty good time here, which I hadn’t expected going in.



Rating: B-

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review: Hellraiser (2022)

Recovering junkie Odessa A’zion accompanies scuzzy boyfriend Drew Starkey on a break-in where all they find is a weird puzzle box. A’zion later opens the box and after some weird shit happens, A’zion and Starkey figure it might be a good idea to learn more about this messed up trinket. Goran Visnjic plays a millionaire who possessed the box before our protagonist nicked it.   Is there any point in remaking/rebooting “Hellraiser” when the 1987 adaptation of Clive Barker’s original text was written and directed by Barker himself? And is considered a horror classic? On evidence here, absolutely not. Directed by David Bruckner ( “The Signal” ) and scripted by Ben Collins ( “The Night House” ) and Luke Piotrowski (ditto) this is an entirely tedious affair. I took a long time to get on board with the 1987 “Hellraiser” , I have to admit. It was wildly imaginative and original, like a nightmare transplanted on to film. However, the characters were stone cold and left me similarly chilly t
Read more

Review: Boyka: Undisputed

Yuri Boyka (Scott Adkins) is out of prison and fighting for a living, with ambitions for the ‘Most Complete Fighter’ to make a real name for himself. However, after an opponent dies during a fight, the deeply religious Boyka starts to have a crisis of conscience. He tries to make amends with the man’s widow, which eventually pits him against a local gangster (Alon Moni Aboutboul, quite good). Anything with Scott Adkins will generally get me interested, and although this series peaked with the superlative “Undisputed II: Last Man Standing” , this 2017 film from director Todor Chapkanov (director of the SyFy movies “Copperhead” and “Ghost Town” ) is no slouch in a series yet to deliver anything less than solid entertainment. Producer Isaac Florentine is missed in the director’s chair, but Chapkanov gives us at the very least the series’ most dramatically ambitious entry, as Adkins’ ‘most complete fighter’ Yuri Boyka continues on his journey to redemption here. In this one, the
Read more

Review: Ninja 2: Shadow of a Tear

Scott Adkins is once again Casey, an American proponent of the martial art of Ninjutsu. When Casey’s pregnant Japanese wife (Mika Hijii) is rubbed out, he’s on a vengeance mission to find her killers. A friendly face, Nakabara (Kane Kosugi) turns up at the funeral, and suggests Casey come to Thailand to deal with his grief in another country. Casey initially declines, but eventually takes Nakabara up on his offer. However, his wife’s murder still haunts Casey, and with intel supplied by Nakabara, the trail eventually leads Casey to a brutal drug baron named Goro (Shun Sugata).   I was extremely disappointed with the first “Ninja” , but had heard that this 2013 sequel from director Isaac Florentine ( “Undisputed II: Last Man Standing” , “Undisputed III: Redemption” , “Ninja” ) was a damn near masterpiece of the martial-arts action movie genre. Having now finally gotten my hot little hands on it, I’d say the hype is a bit much, but this is unquestionably a much better film than the f
Read more