Hard to believe it was only last year that The Hangover hit the big screen and snowballed into one the biggest R-rated comedy box office hauls in history. In spite of a mile-long mean streak, unlikeable characters and a cameo by a rapist, audiences lapped it up. It wasn’t particularly original other than giving Bradley Cooper a starring role and let’s face it, he was the biggest twat of all in that situational comedy about a Vegas bachelor party gone wrong.
Now this critic recognises that to be an minority held opinion, but not one born from blind dislike of filmmaker Todd Phillips whose Old School deserves recognition as a minor comedy masterpiece. What set that film apart was a near perfect balance of obnoxious humour and genuine sentiment. However, Phillips continues to chase the nasty laughs with his latest film Due Date, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis.
Uptight businessman Peter Highman (Downey) is on his way home from Atlanta to his pregnant wife in time for her C-section in the City of Angels. On board the plane home Peter meets Ethan Tremblay (Galifianakis) – a hairy man-child sporting a perm accessorised by a miniature pooch – just before a misunderstanding involving terrorist bombs leads to a rubber bullet for Peter and the no fly list for both men. This leaves the expectant father – whose wallet and id is left in transit to LAX along with his bags – at the mercy of Ethan and his rental car.
(At this point it might be noted, if a person leaves the plane it normally results in an entire cabin check on carry on luggage identification as this writer recently discovered on a massively delayed flight)
Ethan is one of the most annoying men on the planet, a barrage of intrusive questions, moronic acts, general simple-mindedness and a religious love of Two And A Half Men. That last point is the reason Ethan is on his way to Hollywood to become an actor, though there maybe rationale to the idea, after all if Charlie Sheen can make millions out of that crap they must be handing out sit-coms at Grand Central Station.
Peter, on the other hand, is not a tolerant man; in fact he’s an asshole, and in this case a highly provoked asshole. Whether it is falling asleep at the wheel, spending gas/food money on weed from Juliette Lewis or not helping out as Peter gets beaten by a hick in a wheelchair (Danny McBride), Ethan does plenty to incur wrath. Does it make for light entertainment? Only if your definition is a mean-spirited reflection of your own anger management issues.
That’s not to say Due Date is without its laughs, Downey and Galifianakis are just too good not to find something in their two-dimensional characters. But between the repetitive masturbation jokes, father ashes in a coffee can gags and ante-upping calamities, the film never earns its emotional payoffs. There’s just not enough in the script to care about either of these characters or their friendship. Mostly you’re just glad you haven’t had the misfortune to meet either of them.
To anyone who recalls a certain Planes, Trains And Automobiles this plot will sound all too familiar. Where that film had heart and endlessly quotable one-liners (“those aren’t pillows!”), not to mention maestros Candy and Hughes, Due Date is just cruel, stupid and boring.
Due Date opens in cinemas on Thursday, November 25.