Jay Roach's new comedy, "Dinner for Schmucks", a remake of the French movie "The Dinner Game", is a study of two different comic concepts. On one hand, you have the incredibly bizarre behavior of people who are seemingly lacking in logic and intelligence. On the other hand, you have the ethically murky behavior of people who do ethically murky things for their own professional benefit. These dual comedic premises are fascinating and in some ways challenging. Are we supposed to be laughing at the very same people for whom we are also supposed to feel compassion? Many critics have levied a charge of hypocrisy against this film because of that challenging question. But ladies and gentlemen, these critics are missing the point. "Dinner for Schmucks" should not be analyzed on any sort of deep, Freudian level. Because sometimes, all you want in a comedy is to laugh. And in that regard, this very funny movie is a smashing success.
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Paul Rudd plays Tim, a moderately successful businessman who is bored with the monotony of his thankless job. One day after Tim delivers a sharp performance in an important meeting, his bosses present him with a proposal that could earn him a much-desired promotion. His bosses, you see, host a monthly dinner in which each person brings a so-called "idiot" to dinner so that everyone can guffaw at them. Tim is aware that this dinner is morally repugnant, but he desperately wants this promotion, so much to the chagrin of his girlfriend, he agrees to take part in the dinner. The "idiot" that Tim discovers is an IRS worker named Barry, played by Steve Carell. Barry is a sweet man who nonetheless has a horrifying tendency to say all the wrong things at all the wrong times. Not to mention the fact that Barry's favorite hobby is making mouse dioramas. Soon enough, Barry becomes far more than Tim had bargained for. Barry instills in Tim's life a sense of total havoc.
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This movie delivers enormous laughs, thanks in large part to the wonderful performers. Nobody plays a congenial wise-ass better than Paul Rudd. In "The 40-Year Old Virgin", "Role Models", and now "Dinner for Schmucks", Rudd flawlessly exudes a feeling of charm and crankiness, a difficult combination to master. Steve Carell is wonderful as the supremely awkward Barry. Carell performs with such comic conviction that he manages to always make his incredibly destructive character quite endearing and likable. Hilarious supporting work is also turned in by Zach Galifinakis and Jemaine Clement. Clement, of "Flight of the Concords" fame, is especially brilliant. His portrayal of a wild artist with a strangely animalistic sexual fetish delivers some of the movie's biggest laughs.
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The first two-thirds of "Dinner for Schmucks" is consistently hilarious and entertaining. The last third, however, is somewhat flat, overly sentimental, and predictable. Oddly enough, the actual dinner for schmucks takes place in this final act, and it is the one part of the film that fails to maximize its comic potential. The last act of the movie is also where the charge of hypocrisy has some merit. However, for about 95 of this film's 114 minutes, "Dinner for Schmucks" is terrific. Now if you'd excuse me, I'd really like to get my hands on one of those mouse dioramas. Those things are actually pretty damn impressive.
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