Toi et Moi... et Duprée

I went into this movie tonight not expecting much based on the HORRIBLE reviews given to this movie on IMDb and critics reviews in today's paper. I was pleasantly surprised to find this to be another sweet movie about two male buddies that are learning to grow up.

Owen Wilson was adorable and his character was not a loser. Dupree (I won't give away his real name because it surprises you when it comes up in the movie...) gives sage advice throughout the movie. In one scene is he standing in for Matt Dillon's character at a career day, in Molly's (Kate Hudson) 3-4? grade classroom. He tells the kids that some of them will go on to traditional or socially acceptable success, while some of them (pods, he calls them!) will "float" for a while, while they wait for the calling from the "mother ship" for their destined path in life. He says "the pods that needed to hear this, did," and I laughed my butt off. His "floating pod" theory was hysterical and very accurate.

It sounds ridiculous, but it isn't. Dupree's character is consistent throughout as a lovable guy looking for his path. He's a smart, charismatic guy that makes lots of mistakes along the way. Of course the previews showed all the stupid humor (bathroom jokes, jacking off, etc) but it doesn't play as crazily over the top in the movie as it is edited for in previews.

I think the movie was as fun as it was because of the great casting. No one else could have been Michael Douglas' character (besides perhaps James Caan but he might have been too scary) and NO ONE could have done Dupree like Owen Wilson, because Dupree IS Owen Wilson.

If you're like me and you like Owen Wilson movies, you'll really enjoy this movie.

PS: There is a (hush hush) cameo in this movie when you least expect it and you'll laugh.

Last night a friend coaxed me into seeing "You, Me and Dupree." Even though I have liked all four of its principal actors for years, I hadn't planned on seeing it last night or possibly ever. The reviews have been uniformly terrible, so I was expecting the worst. I sat in a movie theater that was perhaps one-third full, and I was waiting for the boredom to set in, which the critics said was coming—in spades.

Yes, Owen Wilson has bleached-blond locks, again, but that is probably the only accurate comment in any of the reviews that I saw, and I must have read at least ten of them, from various parts of the country. He was very good, as he was in the "Wedding Crashers." Kate Hudson was perky as always, and did a splendid job; and anyone who has loved her mother over the years will find Goldie's "clone" just as lovely as ever.

Matt Dillon did a terrific job, and was totally believable comically; and Michael Douglas was very good too, playing his character with aplomb. In short, it was a very funny movie, and quite refreshing given the alternatives; namely, movies that are loaded to the gills with special effects, which jar one's cranium to the uttermost.

It seems like the critics were in lock step in panning this film, which may be driving away audiences unfairly. Indeed, this may be a perfect example of the critics being wrong, dead wrong. Go see it in a theater, or buy a DVD when it comes out, and my guess is that you will not be disappointed one iota—and may actually love it. All four principal actors are perfectly balanced, and they are strong enough to be wonderful foils to one another.

I thought this movie was painfully slow. I also thought considering the comedic talent involved that it would have been much better. I think I chuckled at a couple of scenes but not once did I gasp out in laughter as what I would normally do if a comedy were in fact 'funny'. The main problem with the film is the severe lacking in the script department which left the actors no room to improvise and made them rather bleak and uninteresting people. It wasn't a terrible movie but very average!

Michael Douglas also was an unusual candidate to play along side the 3 main leads - as when it came to Douglas's scenes that is when the film draged the most. You are never really told the reason as to why he dislikes Matt Dillion's character so much - which seems to be a large portion of the plot?!

Kate Hudson was great as usual and did well considering what she was given - she looked insanely hot in that black bikini though!!!

Whenever a movie mistakenly thinks a bad pun of a tagline ("Dupree's a crowd" anyone?) is gonna rope in ye olde movie-going audience, there is officially room to be concerned with what you're about to watch. OK, so the tagline isn't as bad as some, but it is enough to raise a red flag. However, is it enough to indicate what's to come?

Welp, I'm happy to say that once again I'm gonna keep my distance from all your unfavorite (I'm makin' up words, baby!) stuffed-shirt critics out there who are giving You, Me and Dupree a merciless shredding because it doesn't meet the inherent level of pretension they so girlfriendlessly demand. That's right, folks. I, Johnny Betts, enjoyed You, Me and Dupree. I'm one of about three movie reviewers to boldly make that claim, but doggone on it, I'm sticking by it.

Granted, my enjoyment was heightened due to the fact that I kept my expectations low and didn't have to pay to see the movie, but I was entertained all the same.

It's only fair that I be perfectly honest and admit I'm somewhat easily amused when it comes to watching actors and actresses that I really like, and Dupree sports a great cast. Mileages will vary depending on your tolerance level of the actors involved.

Owen Wilson is one of my constant comedic favorites, once again displaying that crooked nose we all love and projecting child-like innocence with his signature charm. I also love his ability to sincerely deliver outrageous and cheesy lines in ways that make them seem not quite so outrageous or silly.

Then there's Kate Hudson, only the absolute cutest thing that Hollywood has going for it. She plays this role a little more low key than usual, but she's still irresistible, evidenced by her black bikini scene where she proves that she inherited what was always her mom's best *ahem* asset.

Rounding out the cast, straight-man Matt Dillon's cool as always, and Seth Rogen, though woefully underused, brings an impressive laughs-to-screen time ratio. Most of you will remember him from The 40 Year-Old Virgin, but he'll always be Ken Miller and Ron Garner to me. If neither of those names means anything to you then we need to have a serious talk about a couple of DVD sets you might want to consider acquiring.

Is this a film that'll find its way to the top of any of these actors' resumes? No. Is it a non-stop laugh-fest? No. Is it a film I can watch over and over and cry with laughter every time? Nah. Will you be disappointed if you're expecting something along the lines of The Wedding Crashers? Most likely.

After all, I never said the movie doesn't have its flaws. Some of the humor is a little too conventional and predictable, and the dramatic dialogue isn't exactly the most compelling to grace the screen, so no, this isn't gonna go down in the Book of Comedy Classics, nor do I feel a necessity to pencil it in as a future addition to my DVD collection (unless the special features are loaded with Kateness). But I found it to be a fun, light-hearted, silly way to take a 2-hour break from the real world. As I mentioned in the paragraphs above, its greatest strength is in its likable cast and their chemistry, and I appreciate the charm it displayed in never taking itself too seriously.

Plus, the majority of the screening crowd seemed to enjoy it. I've personally never had nor been a third wheel like Dupree, but those of you who can relate to such an experience might appreciate it on a different level.

I can't say that You, Me and Dupree is a film that just absolutely demands to be seen on the big screen, but it's certainly the kind of movie that you usually watch with friends and family where most everyone will walk away with a good chuckle, no one will be overly offended, Aunt Ella will comment on how "it was cute," no one's life will be dramatically altered, and Uncle Larry's uninvited segue into some boring recollections about his own "Dupree" experiences will wake everybody back up to their nightmare reality.

All in all, if you think no one can bring seven different kinds of smoke like Owen Wilson, and you find Kate Hudson to be seven different kinds of smokin' then there's something here for you to enjoy. Be it at a matinée or as a future rental. It might just help you discover your "ness."

THE GIST

You, Me and Dupree might not deliver two solid hours of nothing but out-loud laughter and the dramatic elements might falter at times, but there's no denying that the cast is great, and if you love those involved then you'll find some enjoyment here. I wouldn't pay more than matinée prices, and if you don't have a lot of spending money to throw around then just save it for a rental.

In the Russo Brothers' disappointing You, Me and Dupree, Owen Wilson's Dupree expounds an existential philosophy of keeping one's own character, a "ness" tacked on to a first name, such as his best friend's (Matt Dillon) "Carlness." It's a good idea dramatically to remind us all of our uniqueness and the necessity to nurture and protect it from, say, marauding fathers-in-law (in this case Michael Douglas), who might want to efface our individuality as well as get us vasectomies.

Yet the philosophical theme doesn't fit this comedy as it might Chekov's. Dupree's warm-hearted house guest slacking tests the patience of Carl and new wife (Kate Hudson). I can't figure out what Carl's character is, much less know what's worth preserving. Duprees's immature, likable, sometimes witty persona is much easier to determine. Kate Hudson's Molly is even easier, however, because all she has to do is put up with the boys' adolescent behavior and show up now and then in a bikini or white panties with her yellow hair in a breeze to let us know she inherited all of her mom's (Goldie Hawn) good traits including the promise of fine comedic timing should a script offer the chance. This script offers stinky scatology and humorless masturbation instead.

Wilson is establishing himself as an accomplished light comedian with a regrettable tendency to play the same type of charming bumbler who always has a pithy remark to make himself the poetic soul of the piece. His recurring sides of wit and boyish mischief are keeping him in enough cash to keep him from his even more talented role as co-writer with director and buddy Wes Anderson. So, I ask myself, why doesn't he do only projects that suit his creative gifts—maybe because he's lost his sense of "Owenness."