The Las Vegas magician duo of Burt Wonderstone (Steve
Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) has broken up and lost their long
running show due to the arrogant antics of Burt and the increasing popularity
of shock illusionists like Steve Gray (Jim Carrey). Can Burt get his act
together and rekindle his relationship with Anton?
When I watch a movie, be it a comedy or any other genre, I
want to like the main character or characters. If I cannot get behind them
there is no point in even watching the film. So when I say that Burt
Wonderstone is one of the most unlikable characters I’ve seen in a comedy since
Seth Rogen’s Ronnie in Observe and Report,
you best believe I mean it. There were times where I was shaking my fist at the
screen, saying that if I ever met someone like that in person I’d “kick them
square in the taint”. Everything that comes out of his mouth is horribly
racist, sexist or insulting in some way or another. Why would the writers
intentionally create a character like that? In the end he learns his lesson
about friendship and all that, but he’s still a complete jackass. What were
they thinking?!
Steve Carell seems to be taking great pleasure in playing
such an asshole, so maybe it was this aspect that drew him to the character
since he usually plays a well-meaning and awkward sort of guy. Whatever his
reasons were, the character grated on my nerves like no other. I’d say he gave
a great performance because if that was his goal he certainly achieved it and
more.
The rest of the cast is serviceable. Steve Buscemi as Burt’s
long suffering co-star is quite amusing and Olivia Wilde… well, she’s smokin’
hot as always. She made me cackle out loud when she was forced to assist the
main characters on stage last minute and stumbled awkwardly around like a lost
puppy. Jim Carrey still annoys the hell out of me after all these years. He gets
a couple of good moments but outside of that I wanted to sucker punch him as
much as Wonderstone. The late James Gandolfini (I will miss seeing him on
screen) was just okay. I couldn’t tell if he was trying to be funny or not. The
standout… Alan Arkin as has been magician Rance Holloway. He is written as an
asshole of sorts as well, but he plays it in such a way that it isn’t annoying.
He actually comes off as a charming douche, especially when he (wink wink)
“dies”.
Writers Jonathan M. Goldstein and John Francis Daley beat
around the bush too much and can’t seem to find a decent balance between good
natured and insulting humor. The scale tips too deeply into the latter and the
script suffers greatly due to it. Sure they do come up with some clever parodies
of Las Vegas, Siegfried & Roy and Criss Angel, but when the story focuses
on the characters outside their stage shows they are uninteresting and dull.
And that final show scene? Is that the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever seen
or what?!
Director Don Scardino, who is mainly a television director (Cosby, The Mindy Project, Rescue Me,
2 Broke Girls) shows that he doesn’t
have much in the way of a style or vision that doesn’t include the standard
tricks you see used in every other movie out there. You can see he’s trying to
wring viable comedy out of the cast, but the script blocks that from happening
at every turn. I’m not going to say the debacle the film ends up being was
completely his fault, but he sure didn’t help matters any.
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
isn’t a very funny comedy, plain and simple. Golden opportunities are wasted
along with boatloads of raw talent. While there are some fleeting moments of
random hilarity this flick is a big whiff. I was genuinely disappointed at how
this turned out in the end.
1.5 out of 5
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