Monday, January 2, 2012

It's the RDJ Double Feature: Part 1 - Due Date

Yesterday, after nursing my New Year's Eve hangover all day, the wife and I watched Due Date before falling asleep. The 2010 release features Robert Downey Jr. as Peter, an uptight father-to-be racing across country to witness the birth of his child. The problem is he's stuck with The Hangover's Zach Galifianakis playing pretty much the exact same character that made him famous, however this time he's named Ethan instead of Allen... big stretch, I know. I suppose if something isn't broken, why fix it.

The straight-man/funny-man interactions between them go from hilarious to infuriating (I can completely relate with RDJ's character and his sheer rage throughout the movie). With the theme of the movie being about fatherhood, you can see the roles being played out by the two main characters. Ethan as the son, ranges from being a loveable child who can't care for himself to an absolute irresponsible terror. Peter, doing his best to be a father, displays the joy and unconditional love of being a "new father" to the struggle of dealing with a an unruly child.

While both lead actors do well, I really enjoyed the cameos in the movie. Appearances by Juliette Lewis, Danny McBride, Jamie Foxx, and the Wu-Tang Clan's RZA are all fantastic.

Despite the great performances by all, the annoyance of Galifianakis' character brings the movie down a bit for me (I'm sure that was the point of his character, but goshdarnit, I don't like being annoyed). Also, while I don't mind the story being far-fetched, there are some scenes that are so unbelievable (the car crash) that it takes me out of the movie experience so I give the movie a 7.5/10

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