I may have
never been a devoted follower of The
Office, but regardless, I am a huge fan of Steve Carell, so when I first
caught wind of The Incredible Burt
Wonderstone, I was excited, and the inclusion of Jim Carrey was just icing
on the cake. Carell and Carrey haven’t
been on screen together since 2003’s Bruce
Almighty, and framing their reunion in a dueling magician comedy set
everyone’s expectations into the upper atmosphere. The inclusion of Steve Buscemi wasn’t exactly
noteworthy, but Alan Arkin was hysterical in the trailers and Olivia Wilde
looked just as gorgeous as ever, so I was prepared for some big laughs and
genuine entertainment in this newest comedy.
Early reviews were less encouraging, but everyone was praising Jim
Carrey’s return to physical comedy, and I couldn’t wait to see what he would do
as a character that was essentially a mocking merger of Criss Angel and David
Blaine. At its best, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone would
introduce a beloved new cinematic funnyman in the vein of Ron Burgundy or Derek
Zoolander, and at its worst audiences would be treated to some simple slapstick…for
fans of Carell and Carrey, that was nothing short of a win-win situation.
In its
entirety, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
largely misses the mark, but thanks to a considerably stronger second-half
of the narrative and some truly classic physical comedy, I still found myself
laughing. As hard as it may be to
believe, in a cast that includes Jim Carrey, Steve Carell is actually the
individual guilty of hammy overacting, and the persona he created is so
unlikable that the quality of the firm’s first half absolutely tanks. Thankfully, a significant upturn occurs once
Alan Arkin shows up, but even then, only fans of simplistic slapstick will find
consistent laughs. Don’t bet me wrong,
there are some good gags and the final “illusion” is hysterical, but it cannot
overshadow the misuse of the cast; James Gandolfini and Jay Mohr were utterly
useless, and I would have loved to seen more from Olivia Wilde. It may not be perfect, but if you are a fan
of the top-billed talent and can appreciate the inherent comedy in stage magic,
you will find some laughs in The
Incredible Burt Wonderstone.
Overall
Recommendation: Medium
