Movie Review: Dinner For Schmucks

Steve Carrell and Paul Rudd in <i>Dinner for Schmucks</i>. Photo / Supplied

Rating: 2/5
Verdict: Clumsy Remake

The farces of French writer-director Francis Veber are lapped-up by Hollywood as remake material with usually dire results, except when they let Veber do the remaking. This film claims only to be "inspired by" his 1998 The Dinner Game - the plot bears scant traces of its source - but to judge by the result, that's about all the inspiration that occurred.

Where the 80-minute original was light on its feet, this American version plods, and the dramatic coherence of the original idea is gone. The Dinner Game was a blend of Shakespeare and Chaplin that skewered the self-important snobs who thought they were running things; Dinner for Schmucks - even the title is unsubtle - is essentially a vehicle for the over-exposed Carell to mug shamelessly in a string of loosely connected skits, bolted together with a sledgehammer.

In a promisingly brisk opening reel, ambitious young venture capitalist Tim Conrad (Rudd) is invited by his bosses to a special "boys' dinner". Each man has to bring a guest who is ... well, the original French word was "con" which is a bit naughty, so let's say "dork" or "loser". The biggest loser will be the winner.

Tim's girl Julie (Szostak) is appalled by the idea, but when Tim literally bumps into Barry Speck (Carell), he's got it made: Barry's a nauseatingly geeky tax clerk whose hobby is mouse taxidermy and who loves that John Lennon song that goes "You may think that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not." Getting Barry to the dinner is half the challenge and about three-quarters of the film, which seems to last as long as Ben Hur.

There's no reason the new version shouldn't pursue its own narrative agenda of course, but Veber's comedy had a sharp bite; this film tries to tickle the viewer to death. Director Roach, who helmed the Meet the Parents/Fockers films and the Austin Powers series, gamely keeps the pace from flagging but can't hide over-written material.

A saving grace for audiences here is Clement's turn as a deliciously pretentious avant-garde artist, complete with Masterton accent: he has such a talent for self-mockery that, in his mouth, stupid lines sound good. Everywhere else, they're just stupid.

LOWDOWN

Cast: Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Jemaine Clement, Stephanie Szostak, Lucy Punch
Director: Jay Roach
Running time: 110 mins
Rating: M, offensive language, sexual references

-TimeOut