The well-cast but ultimately too soft and sweet DUE DATE waters down the popular crude trend fostered by last year’s hit THE HANGOVER. DUE DATE is a schizophrenic movie that wants to inject edge into the odd couple pairing of its superstars.
The story concerns Peter Highman (Robert Downey, Jr.) an architect who often rages through his days. Most of his ire is vented on his pregnant wife (Michelle Monaghan). Berating her by blue-tooth enabled Blackberry, he has zero tolerance for anyone in his life. That’s why a chance meeting with wannabe actor Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) at the Atlanta airport is particularly annoying. Ethan is Peter’s polar opposite.
And once on a plane to LA, Peter and Ethan get into an argument that results in their expulsion. Unfortunately, Peter has lost his wallet and cannot rent a car to drive to LA. And time is precious. Peter’s wife is scheduled for a C-section by the end of the week. So in drives Ethan, who offers Peter a ride. Reluctantly, a bargain is made and the odd couple becomes even odder car pool buddies.
Borrowing more than a bit from the John Hughes 1987 classic PLANES, TRAINS & AUTOMOBILES, DUE DATE tries to use director Todd Phillips’ success (see OLD SCHOOL and THE HANGOVER) with zany and crude adult situations to produce a film that is funny and at the same time subtly dramatic. And the drama nearly destroys the whole movie. As the two men battle one another in a war of conflicting personalities, the script expects us to believe that they somehow grow fond of one another. Instead of taking no prisoners and giving us something biting and satirical, DUE DATE becomes syrup on top of an artificially sweetened story.
And the waste is Downey and Galifianankis whose stars are riding all-time highs. After Galifianankis lit up smoking something on HBO’s REAL TIME recently, I had hoped that DUE DATE would be as irreverent and edgy. But alas, the movie goes for cheap jokes and gross-out humor that elicits rolling giggles but few hearty laughs. And instead of getting smarter and harder with its comedy sketches, the movie completely jumps-the-shark with a car chase that is so ridiculous and devoid of clever comic timing that the movie is left flat as a pancake thereafter. The closing act feels forced and uninspired.
Following the sad announcement that Mel Gibson will not be in the HANGOVER sequel, DUE DATE gives fans little hope that such a movie will live up to the raunchy hype. DUE DATE fails to deliver past its mid-term.
