Daniel Ross blog: 'The Change-Up': The Reviews Are In!

The Jason Bateman/ Ryan Reynolds body-switching movie has critics less than thrilled.
By Terri Schwartz

Jason Bateman in "The Change-Up"
Photo: Universal Studios

If you believe the critics, Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds weren't lying when they said that "The Change-Up" was "crap" and a "stupid f---ing idea" during their recent media rounds.

The body-switching comedy was heralded by critics as a tired film concept, and the "Change-Up" stars agreed with that sentiment. Bateman's promise when he went on "The Daily Show" this week was that the movie would "please you post-switch." But with the movie clocking in at a low 22 percent rotten on Rotten Tomatoes at press time, it sounds like movie reviewers didn't think the flick worked after Reynolds and Bateman swapped bodies either.

Some said it was the gross-out, foul-mouthed humor in the movie, while others thought it was the failure of the script to provide anything original in the comedy. Still, others said that seeing Bateman and Reynolds act out each other's shticks was worth the time spent. So before you head to the theater this weekend, take a look at our round-up of "The Change-Up" reviews and make the decision yourself!

The Plot
" 'The Change-Up,' from 'Wedding Crashers' director David Dobkin and written by 'The Hangover' scribes Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, is raucous and entertaining but unexciting. It distinguishes itself from the others by not particularly distinguished means: the headlong rush to the R rating. The two disparate characters swapping places are old friends Dave (Jason Bateman) and Mitch (Ryan Reynolds). Mitch is an idiot who swears incessantly; every other word out of his mouth begins with F. (No one swears as gratuitously as Mitch unless they have a disorder.) The movie takes what is a fleeting pleasure — seeing the typically straitlaced Bateman use that word even around children — and makes it a lingering (and boring) theme." — Mary Pols, Time

The Stars
"Reynolds can make almost any character likable, and his Mitch/Dave has some humorous moments. Still, it's hard to buy his extreme persona. And by the end that character seems to have disappeared entirely, replaced by a bland facsimile. It's fun to see Bateman, usually the straight man, let loose and embrace some aspects of his pal's uninhibited wildness. Both emerge with charisma intact, rising above the underlying schmaltzy message." — Claudia Puig, USA Today

The Script
"The thing is, this could have been funny. It's always amusing when Bateman lets loose, and Reynolds is clearly ready to send up his 'Van Wilder' roots. But director David Dobkin and his writers, Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, are primarily occupied with forcing mean-spirited, gross-out humor into every possible scene. As a result, the script — smug but never smart — barely scratches the surface of the movie's actual potential." — Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News

The Humor
"Here you will see projectile pooping into faces. Two men exposing themselves and urinating in a 'magic fountain' in a shopping mall in the presence of small children. Three tattoo artists closely scrutinizing a woman's vagina. Women systematically required to bare their breasts. Language in which non-obscene words provide an oasis. Best buddies essentially sharing the same wife. OK, OK. In the context of a different movie, I can imagine all of those things working in a comedy. Except the public pissing. I think we can all agree that's problematical." — Rogert Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Final Word
"Lucas, Moore, and Dobkin have trafficked in — some would say 'exploited' — the permutations of male friendship. You don't entirely trust the friendship in the movie they've made together. It's too much a springboard to be real. Suspecting that, they send the comedy barreling toward you. They don't suspend disbelief. They wedgie it." — Wesley Morris, The Boston Globe

Check out everything we've got on "The Change-Up."

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