Movie Review: ‘We’re The Millers’

By Kyle Osborne

Wanna hear the word “d*ck” used as a noun, verb, adverb and adjective? All in the same movie? Well, today’s your lucky day since “We’re The Millers” is in theatres. This is an “edgy” comedy, and we know this because a clip with stars Jenifer Anniston and Jason Sudeikis  stating as much ran just before the film at the screening this critic attended. Yep, they actually said that it was “edgy.” If by that they mean that the cast uses the F-word frequently, but in the clumsy way that a 12 year old who’s just learning how to swear does—then, wow—this is very edgy! And cool, man. Cool.

The story of a low-level slacker who makes his living dealing weed in Denver, ends up being a cross between latter Farrelly Brothers and “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” only without as many laughs. Sudeikis finds himself in trouble when his stash is stolen, leaving him 43,000 dollars in debt to his supplier, played to douchey perfection by Ed Helms. Sudeikis is given an offer he can’t refuse: sneak into Mexico and smuggle back tons of marijuana, or else.

Fortunately for our entangled doobie dealer, the film has supplied a major contrivance-his neighbor is a stripper AND she’s played by Anniston. We will later learn that there is absolutely NO reason for her character to be a stripper, other than to appear in a bikini in a couple of scenes. This way the audience can pause and say, “Ooooh, she is in really good shape. Especially for her age! Oh, my god, how many sit-ups did she do.”

But back to the, uh, “plot.” Sudeikis is inspired by a real life Ned Flanders looking guy to come up with a plan; He and Anniston and two teenage kids found in the neighborhood will rent an RV and pose as a doofy American family. The kind of apple pie clan that will have no problem sailing right past the border agents with bricks and bricks of pot.

From there, the film takes the most obvious turn at every fork in the road. Using “d*ck” whenever possible in a sentence or a set-up, and trying way, way, way too hard to be…”edgy.”

So what’s the good news? The good news is that there are about 5 or 6 good laughs in the film. LOL’s, if you will. Usually (this is where they steal from the Farrelly’s) out of sheer shock value, which I, therefore, will not spoil. The two kids are likeable and give the film the tiny bit of heart that it has. Otherwise, get ready for gags that hint at homophobia and racism without having the balls to actually go there.

Oh, and speaking of balls (and this is another place they steal directly from the Farrelly’s ‘There’s Something About Mary’) you will see, in all its glory, a swollen scrotum. An injured scrotum that has swollen, to be more precise. It was not among the 5 or 6 good laughs for me, though the audience roared, in the interest of full disclosure.

Yes, I confess that I did laugh several times. And thanks to a blooper reel during the end credits, I walked out thinking I liked it a lot more than the next day reflection which informed this review.

In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I felt that, somehow, this movie wasn’t edgy at all—it was soft and limp. I realized that  I’d been….by this movie.

2 Stars Out of 4. rated “R” for “edgy”