I remember seeing the trailer for this movie last year. I liked it. I wanted to see it. In retrospect, seeing it in theaters would have been a mistake. It’s not all bad, but seeing on my couch was definitely the best way to watch it.
THE BLURB:
Scott and Kate Johansen must figure out a way to earn some money after their daughter’s scholarship falls through. When all else fails, the desperate couple join forces with their neighbor Frank to start an underground casino in his home. As the cash rolls in and the good times fly, Scott and Kate soon learn that they may have bitten off more than they can chew.
WHAT WORKED:
The premise, the basic one anyway, is SOLID. It’s what made me interested to watch the movie in the first place: Empty Nesters like our normal moms and dads turn into gangsters running a casino out of their suburban house. I mean…that’s quite an elevator pitch right there. The comedy and drama are built-in. And, for a decent portion of the film, they lean on that solid foundation and get a decent amount of charm and chuckles from it.
PARTICULARLY when you’re pairing that premise with Will Ferrel, the quintessentially-repressed-grown-man comedian. How many times has Farrel played the overgrown baby? This role is right in his wheelhouse. Same with Amy Poehler, both with that unpredictable, simmering unpredictability that makes them so fascinating to watch. How are they going to react next? I do have give a shoutout, however, to Jason Mantzoukas in this movie. He pretty much steals the show, and that’s coming from someone who has always felt like Jason acts at an arms’ length. He’s very funny, and very smart…but for me, I can always see his comedy gears TURNING. I don’t BELIEVE him. Not so in this movie; he was perfectly cast.
WHAT DIDN’T:
Okay…so you’ve got a really strong premise–we’re starting a CASINO–and you’ve got three really amazing actors. What can go wrong?
It just wasn’t funny enough. It was slow, which was so frustrating because it SHOULD HAVE BEEN GOOD. The jokes weren’t tight enough. The editing wasn’t tight enough. The writing…you get the idea.
They also made some unfortunate choices with the SETUP for their premise. The bad guy in the movie is Nick Kroll (dog, know I love you), who’s a corrupt city councilman, which is fine, I guess…but what puts our heroes in dire financial straits is the sudden rescinding of a SCHOLARSHIP for their daughter??? What? Why-? *Ira swivels his head back and forth to look for where that came from* WE DON’T NEED THAT. It detracts from the plight of our main characters. I never really believed they NEEDED to run this casino. Their house, for godsake, was a freaking MANSION. They didn’t struggle on-screen at all.Paying for college is INSANE in the real world…there was definitely a way to make that realistic. Make it real! Make them desperate! STAKES! And, ultimately, casual stakes lead to casual un-funny comedy.
So, yeah…there are maybe two or three laughs in this movie, and I’m pretty sure I saw them all in the trailer. Ugh. A wasted opportunity.
4 out of 10 – yawn. watch it for free, if you’re bored.