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Back Shelf Beauties
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Envy Envy was supposed to come out last summer (I have the promotional stickers to prove it), but DreamWorks showed some mercy on us and decided not to subject the world to this dreadful, moronic comedy. Time is up. We couldn't hide from it forever. Ben Stiller stars as Tim Dingman - a middle class, working guy employed as a middle manager at the local plant. He lives the modest life with dreams of saving enough money to build a pool in the backyard. His next-door neighbor, Nick Vanderpark (Jack Black), is Tim's best friend and co-worker at the plant, but he's more of a dreamer who hopes to cash in on one of his wild ideas some day. Nick invents a new spray that vaporizes dog poo, but Tim played it safe and refused to invest in the wild scheme, so he has missed his big chance. As Nick gets filthy rich, Tim is driven mad by jealousy and his guilt over missing the boat. Finally, in a fit of rage, Tim does something that might ruin the friendship forever, and must undertake drastic measures to cover up his dirty deed. What did Tim do? Can he keep it a secret? Where does the poo go? Not many people are going to envy you if you have tickets to see this movie. Envy is a huge, unfunny disaster that will leave you regretting the decision to see it. This movie might be the worst project undertaken by each member of this talented cast and crew. Writer Steve Adams and director Barry Levinson have totally failed to build up the action and circumstances to any kind of climax that resembles exciting. Instead, Envy limps along until it comes to a yawner of an ending that is more of a relief than pleasurable. Part of this can be attributed to the quirky, low-key musical interludes that lead us along throughout the story, but most of it can be attributed to a lack of jokes and plot lines. Christopher Walken livens things up as the mysterious, possibly dangerous drifter, J-Man, but most of his laughs come from Walken's strange approach and persona, which always brings something special to any character he plays. He has that crazy, kooky vibe that the other actors desperately need. Jack Black is just Bill Murray without the talent and wit, while Ben Stiller doesn't get a chance to shine in this one. Black mugs his way through the movie best he can, but it can't make up for the lack of story and script. Adams doesn't give him or Stiller any good, sparkling dialogue to show us how well they get along or how much they care about each other. Black is left forcing everything, while Stiller overdoes his quiet, brooding character even when the craziness requires him to go into full panic and wacky mode. I'll blame Levinson for part of it, but Stiller should know what he's good at and assert himself. Even his big scene is destroyed by horrible editing that shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who can see the multiple technical problems with the movie (Here's a drinking game. Take a shot every time you see a microphone enter the frame! Make sure you have a designated driver.). Overall, Envy needs to be more complicated, more exciting, full of more energy and funnier. It's too flat and bland to get excited about. 1/2 Waffle (Out Of 4) Copyright 2004 - WaffleMovies.com
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