MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:40 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right
| Due Date Movie Stats & Links |
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| Starring: | Robert Downey Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan, Jamie Foxx, Juliette Lewis |
| MPAA Rated: | R |
| Released By: | Warner Bros. |
| Release Date: | November 5, 2010 |
| Kiddie Movie: | Oh no, please leave them at home. |
| Date Movie: | My BFF liked it – yours might, too. |
| Gratuitous Sex: | “Sort of” is probably the best way to put it. |
| Gratuitous Violence: | Slapstick, and a gunshot. |
| Action: | There’s some chasing by the Mexican border police. |
| Laughs: | Lots of them, and many that hit you out of thin air. |
| Memorable Scene: | I would say either the scene with the little kid, or the scene with the dog. |
| Memorable Quote: | Too many to list. |
| Directed By: | Todd Phillips |
| Produced By: | XXXXXXXXXXXXX |
There was an instant comparison to “The Hangover” when “Due Date” was going to be released, mostly because the commercials for the movie stated something like “From the people who brought you ‘The Hangover,” but let me say this, even thought “Due Date” is a funny movie, unlike “The Hangover,” which, in the stretches of your mind you can actually, almost believe, most everything that happened could happen, there are a number of scenes in “Due Date” where even I couldn’t suspend reality, and for that “Due Date” is no “The Hangover.”
That said, it is funny.
Let’s get to the story…
Robert Downey Jr. is Peter. He’s a business traveler with the good looking wife Sarah (Michelle Monaghan), and they live in Los Angeles. There he is, away on a trip to Atlanta, or somewhere thereabouts, and Sarah is pregnant, ready to pop as it would be, and he’s looking forward to coming home to be there at the birth of their child. He makes his way to the airport when who does he run in to? Well, it’s Ethan (Zach Galifianakis). Ethan is quite the character, on his way to Hollywood, and through a comedy of errors, yup, Peter is booted from his flight, has no ID, and who comes to his aid? Well, it’s Ethan, again. Yup, it’s part Ethan’s fault for Peter’s trouble, Ethan feels a tad guilty (or maybe he just wants a friend), and our two polar opposites are now on a cross-country drive to the wonderful west coast.
So, sure, along the way, since this is a comedy after all, there are a lot of hilarities ensuing, maybe some drug use, and Mexican cops who are anything but clean. We find out a lot about Ethan, especially since in the world of Chatty Charlie’s he’s right up there with the best of them, and Peter really just wants to get to L.A. and sometimes his temper gets in the way.
Yup, it’s a buddy movie, and the other comparison people are making is to “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles,” only this movie doesn’t have any pillows (Thinking about it, it almost would have been a nice little tribute by the movie makers to make a nod to that scene, but hey, that’s just me), instead we get Jamie Foxx as Darryl, who may or may not be the father of Sarah’s child, we get Juliette Lewis who is a pretty funny pot dealer, and we get a scene where probably each and every one of us would like to “discipline” a child in the manner Peter does, only we know we would probably end up in jail.
I really liked “Due Date,” and really don’t want to give away any of the jokes because when they hit they usually come out of left field, and are better left to be served up in the moment, but the one scene I will ruin, and it’s the scene that took me out of the movie, was when Peter gets arrested by some Mexican border police dudes, and then Ethan steals not only the border police vehicle, but also is able to hitch up the trailer the police are keeping Peter in, and bring Peter along for the ride. This is the scene that, for me, took all plausibility of the movie out of reality (Okay, it wasn’t the only scene,) although, I will state, that a number of people in the theater did find the ensuing police chase funny.
In the end “Due Date” made me laugh, and made me laugh hard at times. There were some slow moments, maybe things got a little too serious at times, but for the scenes where Peter disciplines the child, and that dog, I have to recommend “Due Date.” And mucho credit to the duo of Downey Jr and Galifianakis because they really pulled off the “buddy” comedy well, thus putting Robert Downey Jr. up there, in my book, as the world’s second greatest actor. (Michael Keaton will always be the first). I liked it, my BFF liked it, and for a fun, adult trip to the movies, I says it’s a 3 1/2 star flick out of 5.
That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!
As far as the Blu-ray kinds of stuff, I still am trying to figure out why the Blu-ray version has a deleted scene that does nothing, really, but show some cut off heads on a platter. It does, though, for movie buffs, give an interesting, kind of “commentary” track, where if you watch the movie via the “Bonus Features” menu, there will be this dagger that shows up every now and then that if you use your remote, you can get a boat-load of “making of,” “how did they do that,” and tidbits about the movie. It’s kind of cool, at least the first couple of times, but it does get a little tedious waiting for the “dagger” to do it’s magic every time – I suggest using the index to see the things you really want to learn about quicker.