Premise: Ryan (George Clooney) is a corporate downsizing expert whose happy life of constant cross-country traveling is threatened by fresh-faced corporate wunderkind, Natalie (Anna Kendrick), who wants to transform the industry with video teleconferencing, making travel unnecessary. Ryan no likey. Like flying. No like staying put. So Ryan and Natalie don't see eye to eye, and their boss makes them travel around the country firing people, in an effort to (a) train Natalie; (b) convince Ryan that Natalie's ideas have merit; (c) get them to work out their problems; or (d) get Natalie to understand Ryan's point of view (pick one -- it's not really clear). Meanwhile, Ryan has romantic trysts with the female version of himself, Alex (Vera Farmiga), and is trying to reconcile his world view with his affection for her.
Analysis: Whenever a movie gets overwhelmingly positive critical consensus, I am naturally skeptical. Oftentimes it just means everyone just decided to turn their brains off and let supposed brilliance wash over them, instead of evaluating a film purely on the available empirical evidence (e.g., Up). However, based on Reitman's track record, I had really high expectations. I went into it expecting a top-ten movie experience on the upside, or a movie as good as Reitman's other two movies (Thank You For Smoking, Juno) on the downside. Either way, not too bad. Turns out the downside won out: this movie is, simply put, nothing special. It's funny, tragic, and possesses good performances, but it just doesn't do anything extraordinary.
Don't get me wrong-- the film works. Clooney turns in a good performance (but he's still playing that same smooth, witty guy he always plays); Kendrick is funny and touching as a newcomer to firing people; Clooney and Farmiga have decent chemistry; Hell, even Danny McBride plays a real character instead of a hillbilly parody. It does all the things tragicomedies are supposed to do. It has what you human beings call "heart." It even ends the right way.
But at its core, it's flawed: The firings are strangely executed, making the characters' jobs seem superfluous; The trip Ryan takes with Natalie is a huge contrivance that makes no sense; Ryan's life philosophy (presented to us via Tony-Robbins-esque motivational speaking events), while hugely important to the plot, is vague and undefended (though thoroughly defendable). Also, the movie is built to drag -- it feels a half-hour longer than it is, and it starts to get a little tiring about an hour in.
I know I'm going to get some blowback on this review, but you have to understand I'm not trying to bash the movie. I just feel it's necessary to point out its problems since everybody else has chosen to wax poetic about how it's the best film they've ever seen. I do think you should see it. All I'm saying is that you should wait for it to come out on DVD.
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