There’s something to be said for having low expectations when watching a movie. I can’t remember the number of times I’ve gone into a theater expecting to be blown away, only to leave feeling like the last two hours would have been better spent catching up on Agents of SHIELD. And there have been countless examples of me watching a movie with little to no expectations, and being pleasantly surprised. Take that advice to heart while watching Flock of Dudes, the latest entry in the ever growing bromantic comedy genre.
Chris D’Elia stars as Adam, a thirty-something dude that can’t quite seem to leave his hard partying, hard drinking past behind him. Chiefly due to his enablers/best friends, Barrett (Bryan Greenberg), Mook (Eric Andre), and Howie (Brett Gelman). But the double whammy of seeing his younger brother David (Skyler Austin) proposing to girlfriend Amanda (Hilary Duff), and seeing his ex now happily coupled with Mario Lopez (playing himself) sparks a change of heart. Adam decides to “break up” with his friends, in hopes that it will jump start him into adulthood. This conceit drives most of the comedy in the film, turning traditional breakup tropes on their head by reimagining them through the lens of a group of guys. The “pretend like you’re doing better than your ex.” The “backslide during a moment of weakness.” All the clichés you’d expect are here for examination.
Alongside Adam’s struggles to be an adult are his growing feelings for coworker Beth (Hannah Simone), a perpetually coupled ingénue who has recently broken up with her boyfriend. The film attempts to balance these two storylines, bouncing back and forth between Adam’s attempts at maturity and his budding romance with Beth. Unfortunately, this only causes both to feel somewhat underdeveloped. Adam and Beth’s relationship seems to go from casual friendship to romantic interest in almost an instant, and the changes in Adam’s relationship with his friends are told almost entirely by montage.
D’Elia is a credible straight man to the proceedings, bounding from scene to scene against a cast of solid comedic actors. Andre and Gelman in particular stand out as solid performers who know just how to land a joke. Guest star turns by Kumail Nanjani and Timothy Simons also serve to lighten the proceedings of an already near weightless film. It may sound like I am damning with faint praise, but I don’t think anyone going into Flock of Dudes is expecting a film that is particularly deep or insightful. As a loose concept on which to hang myriad jokes and bro-tastic interactions, this film is by and large successful. Just don’t expect too much beyond that and you won’t be disappointed.
Rating: 2.5/5 Atoms
from Nerd Reactor
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