Maré de Azar

Awkward situational humor has really been the staple of all of Mike Judge's films and TV ventures (besides the immortal Beavis and Butthead), and his latest effort, "Extract", is really no different. The viewer, I'm guessing, is supposed to laugh at these situations and just take it from there, allowing the actors to feel around. This takes the emphasis off the actors and more on the story, and therein lies the problem. "Extract" is a comedy built for one thing and written for another, and in the end, it becomes a mildly, yet forgettable movie.

"Extract" is so obviously written to be the next "Office Space", which will forever remain Judge's crown jewel as far as films go. The situations are awkwardly funny, yet there really doesn't seem to be a balance to most of it. Judge's newest is rather repetitive in its approach - Joel goes to work, is unhappy. Joel comes home, is interrupted by his annoying neighbor. Joel goes to the bar. Ben Affleck says something witty. Mila Kunis looks hot. The film continues down this path aimlessly, not really offering to build up any suspense as to what could happen with our characters, until a really useless event in the plot causes the movie to end. It experiments with a bit of character development in the lead role of Joel, but everyone else is either a cliché, someone who is not worth developing, or a plot device.

You'll notice that I said the film is written to be an awkward situational comedy, and it clearly is - however, the comedians cast in parts are not really meant for these kind of roles. For some (Jason Bateman, Dustin Milligan), it works and they fit their characters well. For others (Mila Kunis, Clifton Collins Jr.), both actor and character seem out of place, like they belong in a more slapstick or more vulgar and/or stereotypical comedy. The real plus comes from Ben Affleck, who is hilarious just about every time he graces us with his presence, while Kristen Wiig is VASTLY underused. Clifton Collins Jr. is great as well, while Mila Kunis is almost as out of place as she was in "Max Payne". If anything, this film has the most random cameo of all time from Gene Simmons.

Maybe Judge has lost his touch, though I doubt that, because he has a great cameo in the film as well...but his writing is done in a way that it feels like he's building up to one huge punchline that never comes. Don't get me wrong, most people will have a few chuckles and smiles at "Extract", but with Judge's name on it, you'd expect it to be a bit better than the occasional laugh and grin. It doesn't know whether to be absurd, as some characters and jokes are, or the awkward comedy that Judge is so great at doing.

To put it simple, "Extract" lacks the strength of plot, relatability, and character development that Judge's previous works have had. Joel is no Peter from "Office Space". Ben Affleck's character, an obvious rehash of Deidrich Bader's character from the same movie, is the one saving grace, and even he isn't good enough to stop this from becoming nothing more than a mediocre comedy that's best saved for a DVD rental.

OK, so it's not Office Space.

Extract reminds me of "Fierce Creatures", another film that had the terrible burden of trying to live up to a previous film made by the same people that achieved genius-level. Well, it seems that making a great comedy can be like waiting for a lightning strike.

Extract is not at the level of Office Space, but it's still very funny. Jason Bateman plays Joel, the owner of an extract factory ('extract' is in flavoring, like vanilla extract). His sex life has become non-existent, and some problems are arising at the workplace. He's tempted by the arrival of a gorgeous temp (Mila Kunis) who also happens to be a thief and con woman. He finds himself hanging out at the office with his buddy Dean (Ben Affleck) who advises him to hire a gigolo for his wife. This sounds like a terrible idea until Dean gives Joel a horse tranquilizer, which seriously impedes his judgment.

And much hilarity ensues.

The cast is terrific, including those named above and Kristen Wiig as Joel's wife; JK Simmons as Joel's partner; Dustin Milligan as Brad, the gigolo; and David Koechner as the neighborhood bore, Nathan. Gene Simmons has an excellent small role as Joe Adler, a local ambulance chaser who advertises on bus stop benches.

The film takes some unusual twists and turns and on the whole offers a lot of laughs. It does not hit the heights of Office Space, but after the dreadfully dull Idiocracy, it makes for a nice film.

"Extract" works well with a majority of its audience. Reason is clear...the cast is very good, story is not boring or cheap; comedy is neither vulgar nor downright stupid; at ~90 minutes it doesn't bore anyone and it has a happy ending!!! Cast wise, a very good job. Jason Bateman plays the sex-deprived businessman role very well. Mila Kunis looks hot throughout the movie and that's exactly what her character was all about. Ben Affleck has a small but a very funny role. JK Simmons hardly does anything wrong about his acting. Others are good in their context.

The best thing about "Extract" is that the humor is maintained throughout the movie. It's neither cheap vulgar comedy nor downright stupid comedy. The comedy is an elaborate mix of these two poles and that's why this movie is like able. All the characters seem to be performing on a high wire and carry themselves very naturally. There is never a dull moment taking into account the short running time. Besides, the soundtrack is so cool. Really lovely songs.

Overall, "Extract" is a good movie. Can't say it's a very good movie, but still I can guarantee few smiles for sure.

My Verdict: 7/10

The most unremarkable film of the year that really can't even be labeled as a comedy. I'm shocked because I'm a real fan of King of the Hill and I absolutely adore the entire cast. This is the prototypical example of a film's trailer being FAR better than the film itself. In fact, if you've seen the trailer, don't bother watching the movie at all. It deserves no more of a person's time than a cliff notes, abbreviated recap. The entire running time feels like a failed pilot episode to what would make a bad sit-com. Barely a chuckle in sight, nothing particularly funny or rememberable at all with even Mila Kunis' amazing beauty wasted and held in check.

Extract is the new comedy which is written and directed by Mike Judge from who made some films that weren't too successful such as Office Space and Idiocracy. They have both became cult hits on DVD but they were both flops when they were originally released. I loved these films just because of how truly hilarious they are. You can imagine that Extract would be no different.

The basic plot is about Jason Bateman's character who owns a factory where they make Extract and he wants to sell it. After an accident occurs, the company might get sued which would bankrupt them and he wouldn't be able to sell the company. There's a subplot involving Jason Bateman having problems with his wife not sleeping with him played by Kristen Wiig from SNL, so Ben Affleck who plays his bartender friend convinces him to hire a gigalo to sleep with his wife, so that he could cheat on his wife with Mila Kunis's character, guilt-free. We also know that she's a con artist who is trying to get the company sued.

The plot of this movie is quite a mess. Some parts could have definitely been cut down and others could have been expanded on for this to be a much more effective comedy. I thought anything involving the gigalo was hilarious and that includes the actor who played the gigalo and Ben Affleck. Both of their deliveries really help to sell their lines and most of the times that I would laugh in the film it would be to these two. J.K. Simmons was also very funny as one of the factory workers who couldn't remember anyone's name.

I still think that Mila Kunis didn't even have to be in the movie and she just expanded the plot. She could have at least had a smaller part involved more in the gigalo plot rather than a whole other subplot about her blackmailing the company. If we would have seen more of everything else, it would have been a stronger movie.

Jason Bateman was basically just playing the straight man. Also I thought that David Koechner played the part of the annoying neighbour perfectly. Every time he was on screen, it looked like he was making everyone uncomfortable and I was constantly cracking up at that even there wasn't anything too funny about his lines. Him and Ben Affleck probably made me laugh the hardest.

I don't think Extract can actually be called hilarious, in fact it's even somewhat disappointing for a Mike Judge comedy. I have to admit that it was very funny, but it was probably more amusing than hilarious. It's just not going to be groundbreaking like Office Space was. It does work as an interest companion piece to Office Space but it is no where near the quality.

I have to give Extract a 7.5/10. It was very funny, but it had the potential to be better. Still, this is a slight recommendation or at least a rental and it is still worth seeing because it's still far better than some of the other comedies that are coming out these days.