Review of Identity Thief (2013) by Christian H — 30 Jul 2016

Taking Jason Bateman on a reluctant road-trip with Melissa McCarthy holds a ton of potential. Bateman can play a straight man on a slow burn as good as anyone can and McCarthy is a truly gifted comedic powerhouse.

The results are reasonably humorous, but it is not as funny as one might think given the talent. There is nothing creative or particularly eventful as the duo crosses the country. To its credit, the unlikely friendship comes together well and the emotional connection aspects of this movie work.

At the end of the day, it is a comedy, and it is not that funny. Many of the physically exaggerated jokes are too much. I love goofy physical humor, but it is trying too hard here. When a poisonous snake bites a person, and he just wakes up from a nap or a high-speed car collision only mildly affects a hit pedestrian, it enters a cartoon-like sense reality with no consequences.

Worse yet, the dialogue, for the most part, do not serve as a vehicle to fill in the gaps or achieve a stronger diversity of laughs. It counts too heavily on the isolated outlandish actions and situations.

Some of these extreme situations do work, but some miss. It spreads the laughs too far apart and when it misses, it dips. Bateman and McCarthy are both very good and make it watchable; I just wish they had better writing.