You know what they say, you can’t choose your family, but you can choose to check out Our Idiot Brother. After a couple of beers, I decided to check out this new comedy, expecting Paul Rudd to be an incredibly annoying hippy that you wanna punch in the face repeatedly. Possibly with an acoustic guitar. And what’s up with him anyway, did you know that he is 42 years old? He looks like he’s 22, we should ask this guy for some tips on staying young.
I was preparing myself for the worst possible scenario that I must admit did happen. Yeah, he is a slacker who acts like he is 15 years old, and how can he afford all the crap is a mystery (perhaps family helps him). But, you can actually understand his reasoning and why he’s doing all this. Also, the fact that he has five hot sisters also helps with the viewing experience (with no nudity, unfortunately).
I think that we all know at least one person that acts like this and it is funny to see it on the big screen. Especially with a script this well-written. However, I think that Our Idiot Brother offers a welcome change of perspective that’s not preachy or pretentious. It would be a mistake to call this movie thought-provoking but it’s a damn near close one. He made his choices and he’s willing to grow. Grow organic produce that is.
Ned was living a comfortable life growing organic food and smoking weed at his farm, but one day he was tricked to sell some weed to a uniformed officer (I know, he’s an idiot). This earned him a one-way trip to jail (such a cliche) and after his release, he finds that much has changed. His girlfriend dumped him for another guy, took his dog, and kicked him out of his farm. With no money, no friends, and no Azamat, Ned now must figure out what’s going to happen next.
With a runtime of just under ninety minutes, Our Idiot Brother is a leisurely-paced movie you will soon forget. However, it’s just the thing you need after a hard day at work or an easy day at the organic farm. And I know I shit a lot on these types of characters but the truth is that I would probably end up like them if a couple of things were different. I sure do smoke a lot of weed although my worldview is much darker. However, I do maintain an idealistic moral attitude so there’s that.
Family relationships are tough despite what boomers might say, completely disregarding the complex reality of life. So, with that in mind, perhaps you should check out this movie see how you feel about it. Man.
Director: Jesse Peretz
Writers: Jesse Peretz, Evgenia Peretz, David Schisgall
Cast: Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Steve Coogan, Shirley Knight, Kelly Briter
Fun Facts: This is the fifth collaboration between Paul Rudd and Elizabeth Banks.
Rating:
IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1637706/
