Dan In Real Life Details

[Highly rated reviewer]

Vile and sisnister movie

A guy tries to steal his brother's girlfriend, whilst all his family is having a get together. Hmm, lovely! Tries to be cute about it, whilst ticking off all the boxes of what a 'cute' film should do, but there's naer a good performance to be seen and the whole thing just made me feel genuinely uncomfortable.

If you prefer the Wayans to the Coens then give this one a miss

I knew this film would polarise the masses due to the casting of its leading man. Essentially, if you thought you may give this film a whirl because you enjoyed Evan Almighty or 40 yr old virgin then you should probably give this film a miss. Alternatively, if you have an attention span and enjoyed Carell’s performance in Little Miss Sunshine then you are in for a treat.

The vitriol this film has received in Internet-land seems to be entirely based on the fact that Carell doesn’t gurn or pratfall in a role essentially written for Ben Stiller or Jim Carrey. The film itself is not flawless, it is sort of Wes Anderson-lite. Personally, I really rate Carell in this sort of a role and Jim Carrey proved that you can make the silly films and also take on more challenging roles also. I don’t mean to sound patronising about those who enjoy the sillier films (I enjoy them myself on occasion) I just don’t think people should slate a film or performance because they were expecting something less engaging.