Dan Trunkman, miffed at being told he faces a salary cut after he has had a successful year, quits the big firm he works for and starts a rival business comprising him, a colleague who has been forced into retirement, and a young man who, frankly, isn't all there. On the point of sealing a business deal, having worked on it for a year, he is forced to jump through hoops by a whizzkid upstart who re-opens negotiations and brings in Dan's unscrupulous ex-boss as a competitor.
This Vince Vaughn comedy is, as expected, somewhat on the crude side, and I see that it has upset a lot of people for various reasons, one of which is a lack of detail as to the nature of the business activity. It involves swarf, and they get a percentage commission based on the deal they broker – personally, I didn't feel that I needed any more detail than that. I must confess to getting moderate enjoyment from this movie despite its shortcomings (and the vagueness of the business deal was not, for me, one of those). The film's biggest flaw, for me, was its readiness to have its cake and eat it over any plot element it chose – Tim is both a moron and an amazing number-cruncher, for instance. Dan is a loving caring father who is never there for either of his problem children and uses the same level of profanity with them as he does with adults. The episodic things which happen are often amusing, but seldom connected to the plot. It has its moments, but it's all a bit random.
And, to be honest, I can't argue against the criticisms which people raise against it. Vaughan makes no effort to do anything beyond his usual performance. But I did enjoy Dave Franco's very likable Tim Pancake, a complete idiot doing his best to make life happier for other people and for himself while he's at it and, of course, Tom Wilkinson was wonderful, bring depth to a character of complete shallowness.
I can't give any guarantee that you'll enjoy it, but I did.
This Vince Vaughn comedy is, as expected, somewhat on the crude side, and I see that it has upset a lot of people for various reasons, one of which is a lack of detail as to the nature of the business activity. It involves swarf, and they get a percentage commission based on the deal they broker – personally, I didn't feel that I needed any more detail than that. I must confess to getting moderate enjoyment from this movie despite its shortcomings (and the vagueness of the business deal was not, for me, one of those). The film's biggest flaw, for me, was its readiness to have its cake and eat it over any plot element it chose – Tim is both a moron and an amazing number-cruncher, for instance. Dan is a loving caring father who is never there for either of his problem children and uses the same level of profanity with them as he does with adults. The episodic things which happen are often amusing, but seldom connected to the plot. It has its moments, but it's all a bit random.
And, to be honest, I can't argue against the criticisms which people raise against it. Vaughan makes no effort to do anything beyond his usual performance. But I did enjoy Dave Franco's very likable Tim Pancake, a complete idiot doing his best to make life happier for other people and for himself while he's at it and, of course, Tom Wilkinson was wonderful, bring depth to a character of complete shallowness.
I can't give any guarantee that you'll enjoy it, but I did.