Father Figures
1.5/4
Starring: Ed Helms, Owen Wilson, Glenn Close, Terry Bradshaw, J.K. Simmons, Christopher Walken, Harry Shearer
Rated R for Language and Sexual References Throughout
"Father Figures" is a one-joke movie, and it's a joke that sounds better in concept than it plays out on the big screen. I mean, repeated riffs on a quest for two losers trying to find their birth father can make a great trailer, but it would take much more talent and invention than newbie director Lawrence Sher or screenwriter Justin Malen have to keep things fresh for 90 minutes. There are a few cheap laughs and some of the sentimental scenes work, but beyond that is a lifeless comedy that is more calculated than creative.
Tightly wound cynic Peter (Helms) is on his way back to Ohio to celebrate his mother Helen's (Close) wedding to a Barry Madoff look-alike named Gene (Shearer). Also at the wedding is Kyle (Wilson), his charismatic layabout of a brother who has had everything come easy (he made a fortune by pure luck when he was randomly asked to model on a bottle of barbeque sauce). While there, Helen drops a bombshell that the long-dead man they thought was their father wasn't (either he was someone else or a fantasy...the movie never makes this clear). Thus begins their search to find their real father.
"Father Figures" is a movie where marketing considerations took precedence over creative ones every step of the way. That the script was sold 36 hours after it was pitched doesn't surprise me. It's the kind of story that studios love: potential for lots of big stars and locations, a high concept that is easy to tell in a single sentence, two leads who are polar opposites, and most importantly, it fills two of the four key marketing quadrants (young/old and male/female). The problem is that all thought went into covering all the bases to make it sell, while apparently, no one cared to check and see if the script was any good. It's not. Everything in this movie is so calculated and safe that there's precious little that we haven't seen in other, better movies.
Ed Helms and Owen Wilson can be funny actors (at least Wilson can when he's not working with his good buddy Wes Anderson). So the only reason I can imagine drew them to something this insipid the paycheck. Neither one is stretching their range, and more importantly, they're not trying. Both are coasting through on their reputations and charisma. And is Glenn Close so hard up for work that she has to appear in something this awful to stave off boredom (and replenish her bank account)? Granted, there is a certain amount of humor to be had listening to her toss off some f-bombs and have people talk about her saucy reputation 40 years ago, but it gets old fast. Her male co-stars appear on screen long enough to get paid and do what they do best. Terry Bradshaw plays Terry Bradshaw, J.K. Simmons acts like a borderline nutcase, and Christopher Walken has to act weird. "Daring" will not be a word that anyone uses to describe this movie. Or any part of it.
Ultimately, "Father Figures" is good for a few cheap laughs and that's it. Well, not entirely. Glenn Close has a scene at the end that is actually moving, until you realize that it's just that Glenn Close can do anything and that scene makes the entire movie totally pointless. It won't end up on my Bottom Ten list at the end of the year, but I recommend you give this one a wide berth.
Starring: Ed Helms, Owen Wilson, Glenn Close, Terry Bradshaw, J.K. Simmons, Christopher Walken, Harry Shearer
Rated R for Language and Sexual References Throughout
"Father Figures" is a one-joke movie, and it's a joke that sounds better in concept than it plays out on the big screen. I mean, repeated riffs on a quest for two losers trying to find their birth father can make a great trailer, but it would take much more talent and invention than newbie director Lawrence Sher or screenwriter Justin Malen have to keep things fresh for 90 minutes. There are a few cheap laughs and some of the sentimental scenes work, but beyond that is a lifeless comedy that is more calculated than creative.
Tightly wound cynic Peter (Helms) is on his way back to Ohio to celebrate his mother Helen's (Close) wedding to a Barry Madoff look-alike named Gene (Shearer). Also at the wedding is Kyle (Wilson), his charismatic layabout of a brother who has had everything come easy (he made a fortune by pure luck when he was randomly asked to model on a bottle of barbeque sauce). While there, Helen drops a bombshell that the long-dead man they thought was their father wasn't (either he was someone else or a fantasy...the movie never makes this clear). Thus begins their search to find their real father.
"Father Figures" is a movie where marketing considerations took precedence over creative ones every step of the way. That the script was sold 36 hours after it was pitched doesn't surprise me. It's the kind of story that studios love: potential for lots of big stars and locations, a high concept that is easy to tell in a single sentence, two leads who are polar opposites, and most importantly, it fills two of the four key marketing quadrants (young/old and male/female). The problem is that all thought went into covering all the bases to make it sell, while apparently, no one cared to check and see if the script was any good. It's not. Everything in this movie is so calculated and safe that there's precious little that we haven't seen in other, better movies.
Ed Helms and Owen Wilson can be funny actors (at least Wilson can when he's not working with his good buddy Wes Anderson). So the only reason I can imagine drew them to something this insipid the paycheck. Neither one is stretching their range, and more importantly, they're not trying. Both are coasting through on their reputations and charisma. And is Glenn Close so hard up for work that she has to appear in something this awful to stave off boredom (and replenish her bank account)? Granted, there is a certain amount of humor to be had listening to her toss off some f-bombs and have people talk about her saucy reputation 40 years ago, but it gets old fast. Her male co-stars appear on screen long enough to get paid and do what they do best. Terry Bradshaw plays Terry Bradshaw, J.K. Simmons acts like a borderline nutcase, and Christopher Walken has to act weird. "Daring" will not be a word that anyone uses to describe this movie. Or any part of it.
Ultimately, "Father Figures" is good for a few cheap laughs and that's it. Well, not entirely. Glenn Close has a scene at the end that is actually moving, until you realize that it's just that Glenn Close can do anything and that scene makes the entire movie totally pointless. It won't end up on my Bottom Ten list at the end of the year, but I recommend you give this one a wide berth.
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