We’re the Millers: “Well, I’m awake and I speak English, so yeah I know what you’re saying.”
The beginning of 2013 was not a great period for the comedy genre. In a row we had the offensive banality of Movie 43, the poorly constructed mess of Scary Movie 5 and the frat boy annoyance of 21 & Over. Things have been looking up, though. This Is The End and The Heat were both very funny, and The World’s End was absolutely fantastic, and that’s not mentioning Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa. So where does We’re The Millers fit in? Surprisingly, given how bad it could have been, it’s leaning towards the best comedies of the year rather than the worst.
Local drug dealer David (Jason Sudeikis) is happy with his life of weed smoking and watching TV. However, after he gets robbed by a gang of thugs, the boss he’s working for (Ed Helms) tells him that to make up for it, he has to go to Mexico and smuggle across a ‘smidge’ of marijuana across the border. David figures out that while one man on his own provokes the border control, families don’t get a second look. So convinces his neighbour, Kenny (Will Poulter), a homeless runaway, Casey (Emma Roberts), and a cheap stripper (Jennifer Aniston) to come with him and pretend to be his family for a weekend to smuggle the weed across the border and clear his debt.
Jokes come thick and fast from the moment you start and very rarely let up. It isn’t terribly smart, with numerous plot contrivances popping up to move the ridiculous story along. However, if you’ve seen the trailer, you know most of them anyway, since it’s chock full of spoilers save the last half an hour, which is a shame because this is a film that’s best viewed knowing nothing about it.
The film without a doubt benefits from it’s cast. Will Poulter and Emma Roberts show off their comedic talents here, with both having great timing and delivery, and even the normally annoying Jason Sudeikis (see Hall Pass for evidence of that) has some great moments. But of course, Jennifer Aniston is the stand out. Her delivery is spot on and almost every single line of hers is a hit. She’s the shining star in this film and it deserves to be seen just for her performance.
Despite the story being ludicrous and the characters being sketchy at times, We’re The Millers is a very enjoyable ride. Its pace sags in places, but it picks itself up quickly for more extremely funny jokes. The cast are all on top form and the script is sharp and witty. Go and see this movie, it’s better than most of the comedies from this year so far.
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