You’d think a movie starring Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy would pack more punch. Well, there were quite a few punches, but we’ll get to that later.
Bateman plays the male lead with a not so male-like name: Sandy Bigelow Patterson. He plays the role well, mainly because it’s the same roll he’s been playing since his stint on “Arrested Development”; that of a well to do businessman who looks good in a suit and always plays by the rules. Bateman’s character is unfortunately the victim of identity theft, because what’s funnier than having your identity stolen?
Enter Diana, played by the firecracker Melissa McCarthy in her first major film role since 2011’s “Bridesmaids.” Diana is the woman that stole Patterson’s identity, tasking him with having to find Diana himself and bring her to justice in order to clear his name and save his job.
The film is packed with cheesy one-liners and a very awkward and surprisingly long sex scene between Diana and an almost impossible to recognize Eric Stonestreet. As if this story wasn’t already out of hand, it’s revealed near the middle that McCarthy’s character had sold some faulty credit cards to a man in prison.
The man’s name is Paolo, played by an uncredited Jonathan Banks and Paolo isn’t happy. So he sends his thugs, played by rapper T.I. (who should really stick to making music) and Genesis Rodriguez, after Diana to kill her. Now, not only does Bateman have to get McCarthy to the authorities but he has to try to not get shot on the way there.
I love a good comedy, but sadly this was not it. Granted, it did have some laughs. But the majority of those laughs were from things already seen in the trailers. The thing that really bugged me the most was the overuse of one stunt in particular: throat punching.
It doesn’t happen once, it doesn’t happen twice; it happens, and I counted, five times. Apparently the only thing McCarthy’s character knows how to do besides steal a man’s identity and feel bad about herself is to punch people in the throat over and over again.
I really did expect more. McCarthy’s cameo in “This is 40” made me laugh so hard that it brought tears to my eyes. She’s known for improvisation, but it seems that the director, Seth Gordon , didn’t give her any room to breathe.
The same goes for Bateman. His performance, though it is good, seems to be lacking something. Both of them could have brought so much more to the table but for some reason decided to play it safe.
The one thing this film really has going for it is the music. The score by Christopher Lennertz is fantastic. The compositions are soft and moving when they need to be, but aren’t afraid to up the ante when the time comes.
To be honest, the funniest part of this film was the comments the guy next to me made regarding it. Overall, “Identity Thief” is a hit-or-miss comedy. You’ll laugh, but not that often.
If you like seeing people get punched in the throat, this is most definitely the film for you. Other than that, it doesn’t have a whole lot to offer. Maybe the DVD will come packed with un-rated material that was too hot for the “average” movie goer, but even then I probably wouldn’t give it a second viewing.
D+
