Dinner for Schmucks

Steve Carell has tremendous comedic potential. Actually, not just comedic. One minute he can make an idiot of himself, and a second later he can move you with a story told with the help of prepared mice. Unfortunately, it also represents just about everything the remake of Dinner for Schmucks has to offer. The rest is (apart from Shapiro's very good music) a despicable piece of crap that should never have been made. And I'm not really surprised, since it was made by a team very similar to the one that made Forgetting Sarah Marshall. In short, a useless remake made in the style of "the more the better". Fingers crossed that Carell's next film is better. (09/04/2011)

Honestly, I just didn't enjoy this movie. Considering all the positive reviews from users I usually agree with, maybe the fault lies with me for not tuning into the movie's vibe. Most of the comedic moments just didn't land for me (except for Chris O'Dowd in the role of a blind fencer — when he turned off the lights to level the playing field, I couldn't help but burst out laughing). I frequently experienced second-hand embarrassment and, what's worse, I was often bored. For a comedy, that's a major issue. Plus, the creators threw in some clichés, and the icing on the cake was a melodramatic scene straight out of a Rosamunde Pilcher drama. What a waste of time. / Lesson learned: Do you get off on taxidermy? Count me out. (10/07/2022)

The film is simply a remake of a very successful French comedy and as such it's just not that funny. Not to mention the fact that Steve Carell has to goof around to be funny. Jacques Villeret didn't need that, he was funny in a natural sort of way. But not stupid. Carell is like that, but the script wants to give him more. It does not work. (14/07/2017)