This is sooo funny, I'm not the biggest fan of Will Ferrell (shocking I know) so watching this I wasn't too excited but my god I enjoyed it! Both Will Ferrell & John C. Reilly performed amazingly and kept me laughing all throughout. 10/10
My average rating 8.9 out of 10.
[7.2/10] There is a story in Step Brothers. It involves two older people finding one another, bonding over their large adult sons, and getting married. It has the faintest patina of character arcs: a stepdad who has a change of heart, a couple who breaks up and gets back together, a phobia of public singing that is overcome, and a couple of manchildren who form a bond and grow up just enough to pass muster.
It doesn't really matter though. The story in Step Brothers is an afterthought, a fig leaf, and excuse to string together enough scenes and misadventures where director Adam McKay can pair up Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly and let their wild comedy stylings loose for a little under two hours. Most of the characters’ actions make little sense, few people (if anyone) in the movie acts like a real person instead of a prop or a cartoon character, and true to the childlike protagonists, the plot progression can roughly be described as “this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened.”
But you know, it works here. It’s not an approach I’d want to see in most comedy films, and lord knows that Step Brothers hangs together with all the stability of a 747 patched up with duct tape, but thanks to the strength of the performers, it somehow manages to make it from take off to landing with all its chuckles intact.
Most of that owes to the cast. Will Ferrell is just one of those preternatural comedy talents, who you could put in front of a white wall reading a menu from Denny’s, and trust that he would, through his delivery and demeanor alone, somehow make it hilarious. His rapport with John C. Reilly, which has now spanned several movies, is also unassailable, as McKay squeezes every last ounce he can of the well-honed comedic double act the pair has going.
That’s really the only bit of earned heart that Step Brothers has going for it. (And, in fairness, the movie isn’t really going for anything but the most tacked on sense of heart.) Much of the humor from the film derives from two forty-year-old men acting like ten-year-old boys. Sometimes, that comedy runs aground on the realization that as amusing as the antics of Ferrell and Reilly’s characters are, oftentimes it’s pretty horrible or an imposition on the people who care about them.
But the other side of the coin is that, as ridiculous as it is that the pair would crash their dad/stepdad’s boat in an ill-advised rap video or try to bury one another alive, there is something adorable about their middle-aged version of a prepubescent friendship. The way these grown-up stowaways find each other as kindred spirits, taking pleasure in their joint adventures and two-man schemes makes you sympathize with the duo just a little bit, and helps take some of the edge of the premise.
The films also buoyed by the rest of its cast. It’s a trip to see Adam Scott, best known for playing the sensitive straight man Ben Wyatt on Parks and Recreation, play the asshole brother in this one. Scott soaks up the odiousness of the character, crafting the perfect douchebag who seems to presage his unexpected but delightful turn in The Good Place. Speaking of Parks and Rec alums, Kathryn Hahn turns a male gaze-y, one-note role as the wife of Scott’s character (who lusts after Reilly’s character), into a whirling dervish of comic energy. And the decorated Richard Jenkins (who portrays the boys’ father/stepfather) plays a character whose motivation and demeanor seems to change with the wind, but who makes it all believable and funny nonetheless.
Again, there’s very little momentum to the film, but the comic setpieces are good, so it’s easier to let it slide. The boys going on a series of ill-fated job interviews works as montage. Their efforts to brand and market themselves are amusing. And even the final set piece, which requires “awe-inspiring” opera singing from Ferrell and inexplicably hilarious repetition of the phrase “Catalina Wine Mixer” manages to find that off-the-wall sweet spot that makes the Ferrell/McKay team-ups tick.
The one beef I have with the film is that it’s not much more than the sum of its parts. There’s a lot of great elements to Step Brothers: an undeniably great array of performers, a lot chances for silliness, and even the faintest hint of commentary in the “failure to launch” notion at the heart of the film. But it’s all just kind of floating out there, not really connected to anything or building on anything else in the film.
If anything, Step Brothers feels like a film designed for the YouTube age, where there’s little in the way of running gags or character development or even plot that requires it to be watched from beginning to end in one sitting. You can chop up your favorite scenes, recognize the archetypes at play, and enjoy them on a single serving basis without missing anything. Hell, some of them work even better without trying to pretend that the movie is genuinely attempting to connect the dots from one scene to another.
Maybe that’s a feature rather than a bug. There’s inevitably a loose atmosphere to these Ferrel/McKay joints, one willing to get you to laugh by any means necessary, regardless of whether the characters make much sense or turn on a dime. There’s a cartoony quality that is at least consistent, across and within their films, that makes the audience feel like it gets to sit ringside and watch a bunch of talented comedians clown around, even if it feels like the whole team has their fingers crossed through most of it.
My preference is always going to be for comedy rooted in story and character. Even skits and sketches do better when there’s a specificity to what’s happening and who it’s happening to. But when you have comedians who make it look effortless on the screen, and can get laughs via their deliveries or reactions alone, maybe you can get away with barely having, let alone caring about, a plot.
Haven't watched this since I started tracking everything I watch back in 2018. It is easily one of my favorite comedies of all time, and top two Will Ferrell for me. The whole movie is quotable, and I love it so much.
Rating: 5/5 (:star:) - 100% - Must See
This level of dumbness is not for me
my fav movie all time, seen it about 60+ times i’d say. never gets old, even though i know the whole movie script in the back of my bead.
So imagine you and a buddy wanted to make a film. You've only got a day so you loosely plan on some scenarios that on the surface sound mildly amusing. No script or anything - you just assume that when you get into the scene that magic will just start happening. Ladies and gents, I give you Stepbrothers. What an abysmal waste of talent. And when I mean "talent" I am talking about Richard Jenkins, Mary Steenburgen, Adam Scott and Kathryn Hahn. This movie was an absolute embarrassment. The film consists of one hacky scene after another (does it get more hacky than the sleepwalking scenes?). I thought it was even less funny than Eurovision - at least that movie had some kind of emotional core to it so that the viewer had something to latch onto. This movie was so bad that the scenes after the credits are actually worse than the scenes in the movie. Yes, THAT bad.
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Story: 7
Script: 7
Performances: 6
Misc.: 5
Influence: 6
Overall: 6
Dumb sorta humor I would've enjoyed in my early 20s. Now? not so much.
An all time classic. Everybody in this movie was funny. There’s practically a second movies worth of funny deleted scenes they could release as a 1.5 a la Jackass 3.5.
I admit I might be a bit bias as I can relate to the man child lifestyle all too well.
I heard a lot about this movie. All that fucking hype made me go for it, but wasn't worth it. Idk if i was watching a different movie or something but what all the people in the comments say, i seriously didn't find it at all.
Step Brothers is hilarious. This movie is a big guilty pleasure for me. So many things just make this movie great. It’s very funny and well written. Every Joke just works and never misses a beat. It’s also very quote able. The plot is good it’s simple but it works in a movie like this. The acting is great Will Ferrell and John Reilly are the most iconic movie duo ever. The supporting cats is also pretty good. It’s directed well by Adam McKay. My favorite scene of the movie is when Dale jumps on the top bunk and squishes Bennet. Overall it’s a hilarious movie and one of the best comedy’s ever.
(8 out of 10)
One of my favorite movies. I haven't seen this in a while and still knew all the lines. Probably one of my most quoted movies. Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly together are the best dynamic duo.
Grill Movie! Made Me Pee A Lil'Bit! LMFAO! Hilarious! A+
The scenes of them sleepwalking together killed me.
Maybe most people didn't like it because of the jokes or story but i think this is a good movie and i really enjoyed it.
One of funniest movies ever. My side hurt really bad when I watched it the first time. Always makes me laugh my butt off. So many good one-liners.
I think I gave this film too high a rating as I watched this long after everyone else and it didn't have such a nostalgic feeling for me. I don't particularly find it laugh out loud funny. I only really love the acapella and Boats and Hoes scenes.
I want a Step Brother!! This film is comedy, i've seen it before, but its been awhile, and doesn't fail to make me laugh, had me giggles all the way through, this film shows how a comedy should be. 8/10
Very immature, but overall funny.
I sincerely hope my kids will never. EVER turn out to be this way. I didn't really like that movie all that much
One of my favorite Will Ferrell movies! Always funny.
Shout by Ninja PoonBlockedParent2018-07-25T00:34:55Z
Hey ya know what works good for you guys who didn't like this movie???.. If you lick my butthole