"Step Brothers" movie review

This week we take a look at the new Will Ferrell, John C. Riley comedy Step Brothers (R). The two star as 40-year-olds still living with their parents when they are forced to live together due to their parents (Mary Steenburgen, Richard Jenkins) marriage. Enemies at first, the two predictably become best friends. Adam McKay directs.

Ryan: Up to this point the summer has been lacking (not only in quality but in quantity) in the comedy department. That's all about to change as Step Brothers kicks off a run that involves Judd Apatow’s Pineapple Express and Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder. Nothing against Step Brothers but I hope those other two movies will be better overall films. Don’t get me wrong, Step Brothers has plenty of laughs and gags and overall it’s a pretty funny flick. But I can’t really argue that it’s high quality comedic gem.

Andy: I keep waiting for the day when I grow tired of Will Ferrell and his shtick, as many people no doubt have already. He continues to do essentially the same thing in all of his comedy vehicles, and I continue to laugh at it in spite of myself. He is helped significantly here by the presence of John C. Riley, who does exactly what you would expect and is every bit as funny as Ferrell. This is not a particularly well made or clever film, but it is consistently funny, and this summer that is certainly enough.

Ryan: It probably shouldn’t be too surprising—since the movie’s rated R—that Step Brothers is vulgar, raunchy and extremely juvenile. So if you don’t like those types of movies I wouldn’t recommend Step Brothers. But if foul-mouthed and crude movies don’t really offend you then you will more than likely find the humor in Step Brothers—because it’s definitely there. This isn’t Will Ferrell’s best movie but he and co-star John C. Reilly do have the comedic chemistry that manifests a fair share of laughs. There are several laugh-out-loud moments in the film.

Andy: Sometimes the movie gets a little over the top, but I don’t really mind that out of a comedy. Sometimes comedians have to push things too far. Occasionally they will hit on something brilliant by doing this, but most of the time it falls short. The real shortcoming here is not the ridiculousness or the crudeness, it is the lack of a compelling story. The narrative is basically just an excuse to have these two grown men acting really goofy. To be a truly good movie, Stepbrothers should have avoided a conventional plot entirely (which would be risky to say the least), or build a narrative and characters that can support a story the audience can connect with.

Ryan: There's no denying that Step Brothers is an absurd movie with two ridiculous main characters. The absurdity is not so much from the basic premise of two forty year olds still living at home. More to the point it's that these two adults act like eight year old boys. The movie certainly works better when that premise is not dealt with in a way that makes it seem plausible. To me the movie falters big time when the narrative tries to make sense of two senseless characters. I know the movie has to have a story but it's the story that takes away from the movie. That's definitely a problematic situation that prevents Step Brothers from being a truly memorable summer comedy.

Andy: Although I enjoyed Stepbrothers, in many ways it is unfortunate to see these two actors positioning themselves as they have. Ferrell has shown the ability to be a pretty decent actor, but audiences have made clear that they are not as interested in seeing him do anything other than his established slapstick. At the same time, many may forget that John C. Riley is an Oscar-nominated actor (Chicago, 2002) who used to be versatile and earnest. After a string of comedies in the last few years, it is now hard to imagine him in a dramatic role.

Stepbrothers is just about exactly what you would expect it to be based on the ads. It is nothing special, but it is very funny at times. Final grade: B-.