Pick a hobby—from watching Star Trek to knitting—take it to the extreme, and it’s ripe with comedic potential (think of Christopher Guest’s dog show “mockumentary” Best in Show). But director David Frankel (Marley and Me) gets lost in sentimentality en route to comedy land. Funny guys Owen Wilson, Steve Martin and Jack Black are birders (bird-watchers) all vying to sight the most bird species across North America in one year, an esteemed title amongst their ilk. It’s not a hobby, it’s a “calling,” and Wilson, Martin and Black all have their respective moral dilemmas to solve: make a baby with wife, Rosamond Pike, or go birding; head a company, or go birding; stay home to appease your parents, or go birding. Maybe we could just return to good old-fashioned poking fun at people, and leave the life-lessons out of it.
This article appears in Oct 13-19, 2011.
Sweet B’jesis, Molly. Are there any movies you DO like? Your reviews are a misery and I haven’t read a single one where you LIKED the film you reviewed. I hope someday you’ll see something you like. Otherwise maybe you should consider a career change.