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Tim Allen can't make 'Somebody' into something
Are you smelling of beer, wearing the same blood-stained shirt after three days and mumbling nearly incoherent excuses?
Do you subsequently wind up dating the wellness director? Does this sound like the plot of a family comedy? I couldn't figure it out either.
In these days of focus groups and movie audience surveys, surely the makers of "Joe Somebody" had a demographic in mind when they created this Tim Allen vehicle.
From the trailers, it looks as though it might actually be a kid-centered comedy - as in the 12-year-old daughter, wiser than her years, attempts to help her divorced dad find some respectability and realize that she loves him no matter how unpopular he is with the colleagues at the office.
But any further pondering on the subject will lead you to the inevitable conclusion - Allen stars in this movie, and this is his movie.
So we're left with a schizophrenic film in which the adult characters play out a plot line more suited to pre-teen characters in a TV afterschool special.
Yes, Allen, as Joe Scheffer, does get humiliated in front of his daughter when a barrel-chested dude in a suit swipes his parking space and smacks Joe down when he tries to protest.
But he also becomes the most popular guy at work when he decides to challenge the bad guy to a rematch. He gets invited to the exclusive company gym, gets hit on by the office vixen, and even gets a promotion with a huge new office, an assistant and - surprise! - his own parking space. Even his ex-wife (Kelly Lynch) is impressed with her ex-husband's newfound manliness.
But all is not well, as Joe's daughter, Natalie (Hayden Panettiere), and the wellness director, Meg (Julie Bowen), see the regular Joe disappear.
Natalie only exists as a device to get the plot rolling and to offer a random comment on it here and there. The budding love story between Joe and Meg is predictable enough for a 7-year-old to spot in the first 10 minutes of the story.
So, just who is this movie designed for?
The children in the audience the day I watched it rarely laughed, some fell asleep and others shifted around a lot throughout the roughly 90-minute film. The adults laughed heartily anytime Jim Belushi, as a former martial arts movie star and Joe's newfound training partner, appeared onscreen. But the story itself is way too simplistic for adults to truly enjoy.
Although it does espouse a few noble ideals - that, ultimately, violence is not the answer to workplace difficulties, and following your dreams makes you happy - it does so in a trite manner that doesn't serve either of the audiences it might hope to entertain.
| 'Joe Somebody' |
Director: John Pasquin
Stars: Tim Allen, Kelly Lynch
MPAA Rating: PG, for language, thematic elements and some mild violence
