Stepbrothers

Stepbrothers

What a pleasant surprise. I really had no interest in Stepbrothers when it came out last summer. Will Ferrell's perpetual man-child character was bound to get old at some point and this movie looked like it was bringing out all the elements I did not like in that persona. And I just could not picture John C. Reilly in a movie like this - no matter how good a comedian he is. But one night I found myself wanting to watch a comedy and a friend of mine brought this movie over, and I was surprised at how funny it is.

Stepbrothers is the story of Brennan (Ferrell), a forty-year old who lives with his single mother and acts like he's 12. One day, his mother meets a single father who also has a stay-at-home son who refuses to grow up - Dale (Reilly). Single mom and dad get married and now Brennan and Dale are forced to deal with each other. Hijinks, much profanity, and a balls all out attack on a drum set ensue over the next 90 minutes.

Have no doubts about it - this movie is raunchy and mean. And most of the jokes you can see from a mile away. But the delivery is so spot-on and the chemistry between Ferrell and Reilly is so seamless that you can't help but laugh throughout their intense battles for superiority. The movie gets even better when they actually become friends and start considering ways to grow up (generally without much success). This is when the movie grows from being mean-spirited to just plain absurd - with playground battles, bunk beds, a rap video, possibly the most awkward hug in movie history and even a centaur all playing prominently. Bizarre stuff, but pretty damn funny.

Not all the jokes fly. There are two sleepwalking gags that are pretty lame and a lot of the dialogue that is supposed to be funny is just crude, like the writers were thinking, "maybe I will write the word "shit" in this line. Audiences will love it!!" These lines generally don't work. I also didn't much like the scenes with Mary Steenburgen or Richard Jenkins as the parents. Both immensely talented actors, they just aren't given much material to play with, and when they are finally given a joke it just feels like it is being forced into the movie to give them something to do. Overall, Stepbrothers is definitely not as spot-on as Ferrell's best films, such as Anchorman.

But for every joke that tanks, there is another one that works, and that is a pretty good ratio for comedies these days. If you are in the mood for a comedy, stay away from a lot of the junk out there and seek out some Stepbrothers.

MVP: The Centaur. I will say no more.

BEST LINE: "Dad! Dad! Please help! The bunkbeds were a horrible idea! Why did you let us do that?!"