Later today will bring reviews of some more current movies (Sherlock Holmes 2 and The Descendants) but first comes this smaller hit that opened earlier in the year but somehow I never got around to seeing it. In it, Ed Helms plays a mild-mannered, (very) small town insurance salesman who goes to the “big” city of Cedar Rapids for an insurance convention and gets into some mildly crazy shit.
What Works: This is a solid B movie. There’s nothing all that surprising or that interesting about it, but it goes along great for 90 minutes in your living room. It serves as a milder, more realistic version of The Hangover as once again an uptight Ed Helms character is loosened up by drugs, hookers, and a loudmouth, overweight supporting character. The best thing in the movie is that supporting character played by John C. Reilly (back to the type of role he does best) whose about the only actor around that can make his characters more lovable the louder they become. Also, the movie has the loosest, most open performance the usually defensive Anne Heche has ever given and nice work from Isaiah Whitlock Jr.
What Doesn’t Work: Helms is in all too familiar territory here playing the only character type he ever does: the boring guy in wild circumstances (Hangover, The Office, The Daily Show). By this point, the guy has perfected the bland, prudish WASP that triumphs in the end and it might be time for him to try literally any other type of role. Also, the movie is funny but never quite surprising enough to be as wild as it should be.
What I Would Have Done Differently: No obvious things stick out. I think any attempts to make this small movie larger might ultimately do more harm than good. I would recommend this very good but not-spontaneous-enough movie but just don’t let your expectations run wild because, unfortunately, the film doesn’t.