"Our Idiot Brother" and "30 Minutes or Less"

"Our Idiot Brother"(2011) R Director: Jesse Peretez Staring: Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, and Zooey Deschanel

I saw this film last week as part of a much needed Friday night double feature. "Our Idiot Brother" is very much a comedy but I did not find myself laugh out loud as much as other comedies I have seen. That being said, this movie is extremely funny. Paul Rudd does a wonderful job in this film, the rest of the cast does a good job as well but the humor is dominated by Rudd and he does a excellent job of playing the character without acting too stupid and without alienating the audience. Rudd plays the character so that he is not really an idiot, but a person who trusts everyone and is often put into situations where miscommunications and misunderstands get him into trouble. I have no major complaints about this film other than I am normal a very big Elizabeth Banks fan, however in this film I feel her character did not let her natural comedic talent shine.

Overall: B This film is humorous and the entire cast does a good job. I recommend this film to anyone who like heart warming comedies with family relationships as the main source of comedic material. My only warning would be that if you are not a fan of Paul Rudd do not see the film because every part of this movie feels like a Paul Rudd film.

"30 Minutes or Less" (2011) R Director: Ruben Fleischer Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Danny McBride, and Nick Swardson

This film is exactly what it seems to be from the trailer, a stupid comedy that gets it's laughs from outrageous situations and dialogue. In general, this genre of comedy is very hit or miss in my opinion. Comedies like "Stepbrothers" were able to do it well and make me laugh for most of the film even though I was only laughing at the unbelievable things I was seeing and hearing. However, this film was not able to do it well. I did laugh during the movie and I don't feel like I wasted 80 minutes of my life (yes, the film is only 80 minutes long). But, there were many times where I did not laugh for 10-15 minutes periods, even though the film was constantly trying to be funny. I feel the films writing was its own downfall. There were too many jokes. I felt I was being hit over the head with the same tired joke. My biggest complaint being that unfortunately the funniest jokes in the film were in the trailer.

Overall C+ This film is funny at times but is not very well done and being only 80 minutes it is over just as it begins. The film is worth watching if you are a fan of these types of comedies. However, it is not worth a $10 ticket. My advice wait for the DVD.