Grilled

"Grilled" depicts vicissitudes of two desperate door-to-door meat salesman who are attempting to sell the huge amount of beef at all costs. This farce idea of the film is maybe improbable, but quite original and triggers off some laughs. However, the film is not very intense and uses mostly situational humor. The real stress is put on the leading actors who managed quite well. In particular, Kevin James is hilarious and Juliette Lewis in a supporting role as a loony suicide is as always great. Nevertheless, I think that screenwriters really didn't properly make use of an enormous potential flowing from this project. Thus, the script seems half-baked. This black comedy should be funnier and contain more types of humor. All in all, "Grilled' is an average flick with not enough laughable scenes and good acting

first and third acts were pretty good. Uneven middle with some sequences that didn't add up. Especially something they tried to make you believe about Sofía Vergara's character. No one would buy it for one second.

But leads (Ray and Kevin) were very funny in spots, especially if you like dark comedy. These roles are a bit more serious than most people will be used to for these actors. But their characters seemed genuine, and provided laughs throughout. Smaller parts were made for laughs, but fell flat in places. One exception was Kim Coates, who was an over the top arms dealer in a brief but funny role. In total, I think it was worth seeing.

Ray Romano and Kevin James are certainly two of the top comic talents in the past several years. Ray, as the cornerstone of his series, and with reruns appearing frequently and in multiple airings - he has to be adding to the financial benefits from his creation - already well into 9 figures, and probably approaching 10.

I don't know if Kevin had the equity in his program equivalent to Romano, but if he hasn't made as much, it's very considerable nonetheless.

Many big TV stars have had an overall rough time in gaining anything even close in translating their talents to the big screen. Sometimes the films seem to be bad choices - or just "bad."

Bill Cosby's TV show was top-rated, and I believe he led all entertainers in earnings at least one year, and was near the top during others - but what he provided on the big screen was neither memorable initially nor provided anything one would seek to view again.

Even where not only due to movie quality, it seems difficult for audiences to accept characterizations different from those which made their television programs so popular.

This movie wasn't of "blockbuster" proportions, but certainly worthy of better than direct-to-video release. The two leads have worked well together before - James regularly on "Raymond," and while I didn't and don't watch "King of Queens" a lot, I do recall seeing Romano at least once in a cameo-type appearance.

But this flick was humorous with a plot which balanced its humor and a modicum of believability and drama. I thought both leads did well, and the supporting cast, too..

Worth a viewing - and much better than, say, the Pesci/Glover offering, "Gone Fishin'," where even big-screen performers with successful track records can produce a real flop.

Again, this film seems to deserve better than it got.

5 out of 10

That is because I just couldn't make up my mind if this movie was good or bad. It had a lot of classic humor. The problem was that while watching a movie which stars two of the biggest sitcom actors / comedians you expect BIG laughs. It doesn't have BIG laughs. It has "Hmm that's funny" laughs.

I reserve this film for the "if you have seen all the big hits" and just want something different, then this is for you.

It's a decent flick and I will leave it at that.

Enjoy the show.

When I first heard that Kevin James and Ray Romano were doing a movie together, I thought it was a great idea. Shortly after that, I learned that the movie was being re-tooled and would be headed straight to DVD. Obviously this curbed some of my enthusiasm.

However, after seeing the movie, I think it was good enough to be released in theaters. I have seen many theatrical releases that were worse than this.

Certainly there are problems, mostly with the plot (meat salesmen following leads?) and story lines left undeveloped (the relationship between Kevin James' character and his daughter). But the one redeeming quality that makes the movie worth watching is the characters. James and Romano both play their parts well. However, I will say that James is better suited for his loud mouth, slapstick-style humor that can be seen in King of Queens or the sweaty, nervous guy that he played in Hitch and his character in this movie could have used a little more of either. The supporting/cameo roles turned in by Burt Reynolds, Juliette Lewis, and Michael Rapaport along with a few other familiar faces are quite good.

All in all, this is an average movie. I'm a little surprised it went straight to DVD since I think it would have done alright in the theaters given its star power. I'm not saying it would have won any Oscars, but I'm sure people would have gone to see James, Romano, and Reynolds with the right kind of promotion. I'd recommend the DVD for fans of James and Romano, although it won't measure up to their respective sitcoms.