Despite the many talents of this cast, the script falls completely flat.
Even in what would normally be a crazy, outlandish comedy we should want to root for the leading character, but here they give us no one to root for.
Steve Carell's character (Burt Wonderstone) is revealed to us, early on, to be a selfish, rude, washed up, egotistical "has been" who only cares about himself and his own sexual needs.
As we see his career threatened by the "new kid in town" (Jim Carrey), we should be able to feel sorry for him, but we can't. He continues to think only of himself, even when his partner and best friend is painfully injured as a result of Carell's desperate fears during a performance.
I thought perhaps that would be the turning point in this dull story and that Carell's character would begin to have compassion for his partners, leading to redemption for his earlier flawed, selfish ways. But no, he continues to think only of himself.
The script completely overlooks the fact the Burt Wonderstone is so undeserving of any success over his rival.
Jim Carrey and Steve Buscemi are the only 2 who come close to making this film watchable and yet the script restricts all of that talent.
It seems a shame to have wasted all of these talented performers on such an inept movie. Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde, Jim Carrey, James Gandolfini, Alan Arkin....an unbelievable cast stuck in a terrible script.
Some serious tweaking to the script could have really saved this film from the disaster that it is.
It's not even funny.
Even in what would normally be a crazy, outlandish comedy we should want to root for the leading character, but here they give us no one to root for.
Steve Carell's character (Burt Wonderstone) is revealed to us, early on, to be a selfish, rude, washed up, egotistical "has been" who only cares about himself and his own sexual needs.
As we see his career threatened by the "new kid in town" (Jim Carrey), we should be able to feel sorry for him, but we can't. He continues to think only of himself, even when his partner and best friend is painfully injured as a result of Carell's desperate fears during a performance.
I thought perhaps that would be the turning point in this dull story and that Carell's character would begin to have compassion for his partners, leading to redemption for his earlier flawed, selfish ways. But no, he continues to think only of himself.
The script completely overlooks the fact the Burt Wonderstone is so undeserving of any success over his rival.
Jim Carrey and Steve Buscemi are the only 2 who come close to making this film watchable and yet the script restricts all of that talent.
It seems a shame to have wasted all of these talented performers on such an inept movie. Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde, Jim Carrey, James Gandolfini, Alan Arkin....an unbelievable cast stuck in a terrible script.
Some serious tweaking to the script could have really saved this film from the disaster that it is.
It's not even funny.