Kevin Reviews The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone... not incredible to critics, but pretty good by my standards. I was looking forward to this one for a while. With a promising cast, I expected it to be good. However, I was hearing echoes of Gangster Squad as I got amped to see this film so I was cautious. I went in with an open mind and here's what I thought...

Critics were too harsh on this film. Yes, there were flaws with it which I will discuss shortly, but all in all, this is a solid comedy well worth watching. I found myself laughing at most of the jokes and there didn't seem to be anything recycled from films of this caliber. Alan Arkin is great as Burt's mentor. Jim Carrey is...well, Jim Carrey. Over the top as always, but acceptable as the antagonist. Steve Buscemi is great as always although I am questioning the casting in his role. Olivia Wilde is smoking hot and that's all I need to say about that. This is a vivid film with some hilarious costumes and makeup, showcasing one of the more visually interesting films of the year.  The Incredible Burt Wonderstone is what you would expect from a film about a failing magician: slapstick humor and a few mouth-dropping gags. If you go into the film knowing this, you are more likely to come out liking it.

This is not a great film by any means. For starters, Steve Carell is disappointing as Burt Wonderstone. He has no charisma in this role, and that is partly due to the poor writing and character development which is present in all the characters in this film. Additionally, and even more problematic, is the humor in this film. It is too much sometimes, and rather than being funny, it comes off as the writers trying too hard. I'm speaking mostly on the scenes with Jim Carrey, as they were very hit-and-miss. This film is also very predictable and doesn't take any risks. At all. Not to say that ruined the film for me, but it would be nice to see something with such a talented cast go above and beyond the standard.

I would call the movie "The Enjoyable Burt Wonderstone" because that's a more accurate title. It wasn't quite what I expected, but it still stands as the best film I have seen this year. That's not saying much, as nearly everything Hollywood is putting out right now is complete garbage, but it is still worth mentioning. I drew parallels between this film and Ted (2012) in the sense that Ted got good reviews and I hated it, and this got bad reviews and I really liked it. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone does what it needs to do and that's what makes it a watchable film. I just wish more critics would realize that.

MY RATING:

3.5 out of 5

-Kevin A. Millward