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Our Idiot Brother Movie Review

Ned is a warm-hearted hippie who gets in legal trouble for pot possession and ends up living with each of his three successful sisters in turn. Though well-meaning, Ned unintentionally frustrates his sisters with his guileless approach to life. Paul Rudd gives a stellar comedic performance as Ned, contrasting his optimistic character with his cynical sisters. The film uses humor to suggest that being kind to others and helping them brings more happiness than cynicism. It leaves the viewer with an amusing case that the world would benefit from more of Ned's thinking.

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45 views2 pages

Our Idiot Brother Movie Review

Ned is a warm-hearted hippie who gets in legal trouble for pot possession and ends up living with each of his three successful sisters in turn. Though well-meaning, Ned unintentionally frustrates his sisters with his guileless approach to life. Paul Rudd gives a stellar comedic performance as Ned, contrasting his optimistic character with his cynical sisters. The film uses humor to suggest that being kind to others and helping them brings more happiness than cynicism. It leaves the viewer with an amusing case that the world would benefit from more of Ned's thinking.

Uploaded by

Oshram Kino
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Our Idiot Brother

(2011)
Although Im somewhat disappointed hes become a member of Team Apatow, Ive been a fan of Paul Rudds since he did Clueless like a zillion years ago. He manages to be funny without acting stupid, he was brilliant in I Could Never Be Your Woman (among other films), and he was the only person in ten years to be added to the permanent cast of Friends. So clearly the guy has something going for him. In Our Idiot Brother he plays Ned, a warm-hearted, well-meaning neo-hippie who has three sisters (Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, and Emily Mortimer), all of whom are relatively successful. Ned is a bum who lives on an organic farm and works a produce stand, when a misunderstanding on his part lands in him in jail for possession of pot. When he is barred from the farm after his release, he shuffles from family member to family member, getting involved in their lives and trying as best as he can to help out, but always managing to end up infuriating them. It could have been a flat offering, but the performances are so sharp that the humor really shines through. Rudd is stellar as Ned; hes not stupid or dopey, hes just guileless and honest and approaches the world from an optimistic viewpoint. The contrast with his sisters who are all modern, jaded, and cynical is largely what propels the movie and provides much of the humor (one can sort of wonder how the girls turned out so differently from Ned, but this is sort-of explained in a scene with Ned and his mom). All three lead actresses are really, really good Banks Miranda is a bit stereotypical but shes very well sketched, and Deschanel is perfectly cast as the slightly ditzy Natalie. Mortimer gets to play frumpy hausfrau Liz next to these two, but she manages to hold her own. As good as they are, however, Rudd simply outshines them all with a sly comic performance thahts as good as anything hes ever done. Of course I enjoyed (embraced would be closer) the theme that being nice to people is a better way to approach the world than being a cynical prick, and for all their success, the sisters arent happy in the way that Ned is (particularly when he is reunited with his dog, Willie Nelson). Theres a little bit of a moral lesson in the movie, mostly camouflaged by the humor, but Im all in favor of telling people they need to be less dishonest and less prickish. And frankly, Ned is funny. His observations on life are hilarious, and his insight into people leads him to the realization that its all about helping others. Ned likes making people happy, and the movie makes a strong but amusing case that we would all be better off with a little more of that thinking in the world. I really, really enjoyed this film; I laughed all the way through, and found it a rare gem. Its not that often I experience a film infused with such a warmth of spirit (and cleverness, too), but this one has a heart and a terrific sense of humor. If only more comedies were this smart, this funny, and this good. Well worth your time to check out.

November 26, 2011

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