Movie Review: 30 Minutes or Less (2011)
At least it was short
Photo: Columbia Pictures
30 Minutes or Less is inspired by a true story, though the true story ends tragically different than does this comedic adaptation. Then again, calling this "comedic" is a bit of a falsehood. If we're talking in truths, 30 Minutes or Less is a frequently unfunny story of idiots that swear and yell as loud as they can in hopes for laughs that never come. Structurely, the film holds up, but as far as entertainment goes, it's a miss.
The cast includes Jesse Eisenberg, Danny McBride, Aziz Ansari, Nick Swardson, Michael Peña and Fred Ward. For more information on this film including pictures, trailers and a detailed synopsis choose from the following menu.
Review
"30 Minutes or Less" is a Columbia Pictures release, directed by Ruben Fleischer and is rated R for crude and sexual content, pervasive language, nudity and some violence. The running time is 1 hour 22 minutes.
This is a story that's more Fargo than anything else, but it remains safe and skirts farther away from the darker comedic stylings of the Coen brothers and instead is just as unfunny as another 2011 comedy, Your Highness. 30 Minutes doesn't quite go so far as to bore us with mushroom headed alien oracles or sexually aroused minotaurs, but it certainly dismisses the idea of comedic timing with ill-placed and tired jokes that feel as if they were written by hack comedians who think the louder they say the word "fuck" the funnier it is. It's not.
Nick is played by Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), reteaming with his Zombieland helmer Ruben Fleischer. Eisenberg is probably the only consistent bright spot in the film, showing any kind of measurable acting talent and true sense of panic considering the position his character has been put in. Aziz Ansari, however, as Nick's friend, Chet, is a nightmare of unaffected line reading. Ansari may as well be at a table reading as far as this film is concerned, the best example being an out of place Netflix joke wedged into the narrative as if he was trying out new material for his standup gig.
Then we come to Danny McBride. If you consider yelling obscenities and insults at the top of your lungs funny, then Danny McBride is your man. I personally found McBride to be the best thing about Pineapple Express and I enjoyed his brief moments in Tropic Thunder, but otherwise I have found him to be a sledgehammer of awful. From Foot Fist Way to Your Highness and now 30 Minutes or Less, McBride creates characters that seem to have been generated from a vortex of stupidity. And not a funny kind of stupid, a stupid kind of stupid. McBride and his co-hort played by Nick Swardson essentially turn into a pair of criminal morons I didn't find funny as much as they left me straight faced and annoyed.
I will admit, however, the actual bank robbery scene is pretty funny, I liked Michael Pena as Chango, the hired assassin and the film itself is tightly edited down to 83 minutes. I may not have liked 30 Minutes or Less all that much, but it knows when enough is enough, which I can respect.
After Zombieland, director Ruben Fleischer was in the running to direct Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, but decided he wasn't ready for something that large. So instead he chose a film that hardly tests his talents. I can respect Fleischer for holding off from biting off more than he could chew, but when it comes to filmmaking or any profession, if you aren't challenged you're bored and that's exactly what I got from 30 Minutes or Less, a lame comedy serving as a step backward in Fleischer's career. Hopefully he's gotten the fear of tackling something larger out of his system since he has Gangster Squad next and a strong cast lined up. I'd hate to see Fleischer's solid start with Zombieland become his crowning achievement.
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You can't comment on Danny McBride without mentioning his Kenny Powers character in Eastbound & Down (one of the best comedies shows in recent years). Powers has much of the same qualities of other McBride character but he's also got the complexities a character like that would have in real life. It's marvelous.
Coincidentally, I've just finished watching the first two seasons of "Eastbound & Down," and McBride absolutely steals the show. I do, however, agree with Brad on this film — it's a mess, and McBride's character is nothing but an annoyance.
Very interesting, Brad was high on "Change-Up" when other critics where not, while he's down on "30 Minutes" when critics seem to like it. He did have an agenda against the movie, based on the article earlier in the week.
But your right about the running time, because "Change-Up" was way to long. Comedies work at 90 minutes, if it takes 120, that's to much work.
No agenda against 30 Minutes, where did you get that from? The article earlier this week was merely an informational one. Sure, I have a problem with the filmmakers acting as if they knew virtually nothing about the true story when the entire setup is pretty much exactly the same, but that has nothing to do with an agenda or my opinion of the movie for that matter. I do wish you would choose your words more wisely.
If your going to go after "30 Minutes", then you have to go after the "Help" as from the "Association of Black Women Historians" who say "The Help distorts, ignores, and trivializes the experiences of black domestic workers. We are specifically concerned about the representations
of black life and the lack of attention given to sexual harassment and civil rights activism."
I stand corrected, seeing the story on "The Help". Personally, I just go to a movie with blinders on. If you enjoyed "Help", what you read later should not change your mind about the movie, like "30 Minutes"
Plus I wouldn't say critics are liking 30 Minutes Or Less considering it has a 41% on RT. At best, you can argue its less of a critical failure then the Change Up.
I don't think it's quite that accurate to say that critics liked "30 MInutes" — it's only at 42% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Next time I'll read the whole thread before replying to the first comment. My bad.
Couldn't disagree with you more. It was hilarious.
I agree! Maybe you should watch movies with other people for a change! What are you Gene Siskel or the Ebert fella? This movie was funny as hell and the whole theater was laughing the whole time. Not to mention it was just plain fun! you seem to be a lame critic who just happens to have a cool website. That is what I have noticed over the last year I have been here. By the way …..Mr. Poppers penguins…the kids loved and it wasn't too bad I.M.O either! No one cares to watch the giving tree with brad pitt, the help, or any of the stupid arthouse crap that you keep trying to force on all of us on this site! I will punish you now and take away my 10 page views or more a week, next week I will stay on EW.com …who's with me!!!
You don't have to go to Ew, that is just where I am going.
Hey Ryan, my theater was packed with general audience members. 95% of the films I see and review are with a full house, for the most part, only the smaller independent features are ever screened for critics only.
You are entitled to your opinion and I'm sorry to see you go. Thanks for visiting.
You know i find it very dumb when people rip on your stuff Brad.Your just giving an opinion. Some of these people obviously are hardcore on the "stupid comedy" genre. I love comedies, I like a lot of other styles of movies also. When i see a review on here that a movie isnt funny,Im going to assume i will be wasting my money on the movie. It takes a lot for me to laugh , the comedies that have come out in the past year or so, haven't really hit me and your reviews pretty much sum up what my thoughts were on them.Also, keep those independant movie reviews coming , i wanna see movies like that !
For the most part, I completely agree with Brad. I went to an advance screening of this film so I didn't even have to pay for my ticket, but I'm still angry that I wasted my time on this crap. That is 90 minutes of my life I can't get back.
Danny McBride is quickly moving up my "hate" list. Rarely has he been anything but obnoxious and this film is no different. His character was an idiot and his portrayal of said idiot was exceedingly annoying.
For a comedy, this film is really not very funny. I laughed maybe 4 or 5 times. When I did laugh, it was always because of a line read by Aziz Ansari. This is where my opinion differs from Brad's. I agree that his performance was horrible and it was exactly that which was hysterical to me. Kind of in the vain of "it's so bad it's good". But seriously, that was, for me, the only bright spot.
So I saw 30 minutes or Less and thought it was pretty good,but could have defiantly been better. I didnt seem to laugh as much throughout as i did in The Change-Up tye night before. I will admit though, 30 minutes or Less did have a few scenes that i laughed harder in. Like the Jason Vorhees scene and the bank robbery. The thing I think made the Change Up a better movie though was the surprises. The trailer didnt reveal anything,unlike 30 minutes or Less trailer,which made the movie very predictable. Overall, it was pretty funny though.