Again, thanks to Omy.sg, we were invited for an exclusive preview of “Dinner for Schmucks” at Iluma. I think Omy.sg loves me, and I love Omy.sg the same. I picked “Schmucks” because it is mid week and I reckon I need some comedy. The movie is not perfect. But it delivers. Cynthia and I had a hearty fun time.
We love Steve Carell, the 40 years old virgin and the Tripplehorns. And in “Schmucks”, he plays the role of an idiot. Or so it seems by and large as there is a deeper debate on who are the schmucks, which I would not want to spoil your fun watching this movie. Steve is a talented comedian. He can play any role and be convincing. We also love the other lead actor Paul Rudd who has acted in “I Love You, Man”. If you enjoy watching Western comedy, putting the two together can be quite a treat. The surprise to us is the talented New Zealander Jemaine Clement from “Flight of the Concords“. His airtime in this movie is way too little. I really wish that he had a more significant role to play. The spooky yet hilarious Kristen Schaal too from “Concords” is also involved in this movie, together with a quality team of comedians too long to be listed here.
From the story writing point of view, “Schmucks” is not going to be memorable. Rarely comedy films do. The middle part of this 114 minutes film could be quite awkward to watch, though hilarious. Because it can be quite … stupid (the young girl next to me were laughing and screaming “It is so stupid” at the same time, all the time – which is quite funny on its own). The good news is that it has a quality ending and some of the jokes are original. And if you are not in a hurry to leave the theater at the end of the show (interestingly many people here do), there is a tiny bit of extra clip after the end credits.
If I could single out one thing I wish to complement, that would be those miniaturized mouse models. So beautifully made, so heartwarming / heart wrenching to look at. I seriously think that the filmmakers should sell the replicas of these models as merchandise. I would want to get some. The choice of soundtrack is good too. Need a good brainless laugh? I doubt “Schmucks” would disappoint. I laughed till my face went numb.