Rated
R (Pervasive Strong Crude Sexual Content and Language, Some Graphic Nudity and Drug
Use)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 52 Minutes
Cast:
Jason
Bateman-Dave Lockwood
Ryan
Reynolds-Mitch Planko
Leslie
Mann-Jamie Lockwood
Olivia
Wilde-Sabrina McArdle
Alan
Arkin-Mr. Planko/Mitch's Father
Gregory
Itzin-Flemming Steel
Mircea
Monroe-Tatiana
Sydney
Rouviere-Cara Lockwood
Directed
by David Dobkin
 |
| Jason Bateman scolds Ryan Reynalds for starring in "Green Lantern." |
Is
the grass truly greener on the ‘other side?’ Body-swap comedies haven’t enjoyed
much popularity in recent years, having been done to death already by Hollywood
but 2003’s remake of “Freaky Friday” proved to be an exception to the rule,
making up for its tired and clichéd premise with wit and charm. Such qualities
are entirely absent in “The Change-Up” and the only originality it manages to muster
is taking what is essentially a PG concept and transplanting it into the world of
raunchy, R-rated comedies, which is all the rage this summer. Ryan Reynolds and
especially Jason Bateman clearly enjoy stepping outside their comfort zones but
the film adds nothing new to the subgenre and to add insult to injury, suffers
from unlikable characters, a mean-spirited tone, and increasingly outrageous
gags that come off as too desperate in its attempts to elicit laughs from the
audience.
Dave Lockwood (Jason Bateman) is married to a loving wife, Jamie
(Leslie Mann), with three kids and works at a high-profile law firm that frequently
keeps him away from home. His best friend is Mitch Planko (Ryan Reynolds), an
out-of-work actor who spends his time lounging around his apartment while
getting high on marijuana and bedding a new woman seemingly every week. Having
not seen each other for quite some time, Dave and Mitch reunite at a bar and catch
a baseball game, expressing their mutual envy for each other. While urinating
in a public fountain, the two wish aloud that they had each others' lives. The
next morning, both wake up to shockingly discover that they have switched
bodies! They rush back to the fountain to reverse the process but find that it
has been moved, forcing the two to make the best of a bad situation until they
can track it down. Havoc ensues when Mitch begins to mess up Dave’s marriage
and his work at the law firm, which is in the middle of an important merger. At
the same time, Dave struggles to survive Mitch’s hedonistic lifestyle.
Despite
the crass meter dialed up to eleven, “The Change-Up” does little to
differentiate it from other body-swap comedies and sticks close to a stale formula.
The opening minutes quickly introduces us to our main characters and the state
they’re in. Dave is overstressed from his workload and taking care of his three
kids that he finds no time to relax or pay attention to his wife’s needs. Mitch
has a strained relationship with his father (Alan Arkin), who views his son as
a disappointment. Once they switch bodies, the two are forced to confront some
hard truths about themselves and work out their issues. It’s not a spoiler to
say that that they come away from the experience with a new appreciation for
their lives and conclude that while it’s not perfect, it’s not as bad as they initially
made it out to be. For such a predictable outcome, it clearly did not need a
two hour running time to arrive at what was already apparent from the beginning.
However, it’s hard to care about these characters and the catharsis they
achieve when they’re unlikable to begin with. Mitch sprouts profanity like no
tomorrow, leers at Jamie in a sexually aggressive manner and as Dave, his
treatment of his best friend’s children borders on neglect and child abuse as
the baby twins start putting their hands into blenders and throwing kitchen
knives (obviously digitally enhanced). It’s a wonder that no one is
seriously hurt or killed. He also teaches Dave’s daughter Cara that violence is
always the answer but this being a Hollywood film, none of these actions have any
real-world consequences, which apparently makes it all okay in the eyes of the
filmmakers. Although Dave leads a more respectable life, he begins thinking
about sleeping with his attractive co-worker, Sabrina McArdle (Olivia Wilde),
rationalizing that it’s not wrong since he’s in Mitch’s body. Whether he is in
his own body or not, these thoughts should not
even be crossing his mind.
The tone is often mean-spirited, the dialogue
written to shock and offend rather than to make us laugh. Mitch, as Dave,
offhandedly remarks that he’s not attracted to Jamie anymore and the next
morning, she pours her heart out at Dave in Mitch’s body in an emotional scene
that belongs in a much better film. All
the characters are depicted as total morons and I find it hard to believe that
Mitch can grasp the intricacies of being a lawyer in such a short time. Even
Jamie seems oblivious to the changes of her husband and assumes that he’s
having an affair. These problems are compounded by the fact that the film fails
at the simple task of being actually
funny, with the so-called ‘drama’ feeling tacked on and manipulative. I will admit
that seeing Dave getting a mouthful of fecal matter elicited a chuckle from me but
the humor is just too gross and ridiculous. In fact, it’s painful to watch
these talented actors embarrass themselves to such a low degree. At one point,
Dave, in Mitch’s body, has to go shoot a film and discovers to his horror that
its ‘light pornography’ (involves no penetration) and must participate in a
threesome with a man and a sixty-year old, big-breasted woman. Later, one of
Mitch’s girlfriends shows up for a night of sexual debauchery and happens to be
nine months pregnant. Writers Jon
Lucas and Scott Moore (who wrote “The Hangover” but not its sequel) mistake juvenile
vulgarity and offensiveness with being clever as all the outrageous gags try
too hard to elicit a cheap laugh. The only people that will find this type of
humor funny are the ones who are mentally undeveloped.
Putting aside my
feelings about their characters, Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman are actually quite
convincing with their imitation of each others' roles, a credit to their comedic abilities. Bateman
is clearly enjoying being able to let loose and swearing up a storm in front of
everyone to the point where Reynolds feels almost low-key by comparison. Leslie Mann provides
the film’s emotional core and is the most sympathetic character as she suffers
from so many indignities but even she isn’t free from the script’s sloppy
writing. Although Mann has two nude scenes, I have a nagging feeling that
CG trickery was involved, either to enhance or remove the clothes. Olivia Wilde
serves mainly as eye-candy for the male audience but she makes the most out of
her underwritten role.
“The Change-Up” was released on August 5, 2011 and has
received overwhelmingly negative reviews with 22% on Rotten Tomatoes. While
critics found that ‘there's a certain amount of fun to be had from watching
Bateman and Reynolds play against type…it isn't enough to carry [the film]
through its crude humor and formulaic plot.’ Opening against 20th Century Fox’s
reboot “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” the film elicited little interest and
came in at a weak fourth place at the box office during its opening weekend
with $13.5 million, a far cry from other R-rated comedies released this summer.
The production budget is somewhat high at $52 million so it should break even
domestically. I was initially looking forward to seeing this film as Reynolds
and Bateman have always exhibited a likable charm but all of it is buried under
a pile of steaming crap, which is a shameful waste of their comedic talents. To
quote Roger Ebert, ‘Anyone who enjoys this film cannot fairly be considered an
adult. Pity about the R rating. It will keep out those callow enough to enjoy
it.’
Final
Rating: 1.5 out of 5
"She
wants it in missionary, wheelbarrow, Arabian goggles, the Arsenio Hall, the
pastrami sandwich, the Lonesome Dove, the Wolfgang Puck—look, let me tell you,
no man is that hungry."
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