Buddy comedies with two well-known leads are usually a safe bet when it comes to going to the theater, but I must admit that I was highly skeptical, almost apprehensive, concerning Dinner for Schmucks. While I am, at best, a casual fan of The Office, I do appreciate the comedic talent of Steve Carell, and he has more than proven this talent as a leading man on the silver screen, The 40 Year-Old Virgin and Get Smart being two obvious examples. Paul Rudd has also been skyrocketing in popularity in the last few years, appearing in an impressive amount of now-classic Hollywood comedies. Carell and Rudd have worked together before on both Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and The 40 Year-Old Virgin, and while I would normally not have hesitated to see the pairing of these two yet again, the reality was that with every new trailer, Dinner for Schmucks only looked worse and worse. Despite the résumés of the two leads and the novel concept of the script, Dinner for Schmucks looked so mind-numbingly idiotic that it had the potential to be a comedic disaster; as I walked into the theater, I was preparing myself for the worse.
I am happy to report that my initial perceptions of Dinner for Schmucks couldn’t have been farther from the truth. True, some of the main characters make the cast of Jersey Shore look like Nobel laureates, but the level of idiocy on screen provides for a shockingly high level of comedy. I cannot recall the last movie I saw that was as consistently funny as Dinner for Schmucks…even The Hangover took pauses to let the audience stop laughing and catch their breath. The one warning I must give concerning Dinner for Schmucks involves Steve Carell; if you are a fan of his and delight in his idiotic antics over at Dunder Mifflin, his work in Dinner for Schmucks is nothing short of comedic genius. However, if you don’t like Steve Carell and don’t appreciate the subtleties of idiotic humor, I doubt you’ll enjoy this latest entry. Despite this warning, given Steve Carell’s shockingly high level of popularity, I have no problem declaring Dinner for Schmucks a comedic must-see.
For more information, please read the full review.
Overall Recommendation: High
