Post by StevePulaski on Feb 25, 2011 23:06:44 GMT -5
Shepard, Simpson, and Cook in Employee of the Month.
Rating: ★★★
There is a scene in Employee of the Month where you can see the name of the store (Super Club) in the background while simultaneously see a cart that says "Cosco Wholesale" clear as day. It's one of the biggest errors in film I've seen yet. It ranks up with the giant continuity diner scene in Gone Fishin'. Aside from that, Employee of the Month is a funny and light-hearted comedy that isnt as bad as others say it is.
Dane Cook was never on my list of favorites. I never was too fond of him during his stand-up routines or his movies all together. Putting this in was definitely an odd move by me. Even though Dane Cook isnt really funny in his stand-up, he proved to pull off a good slacker in Employee of the Month. Plus he had a great band of sidekicks including Andy Dick (the second best person in this movie.)
Zack (Cook) is a box boy at a local Super Club store. He is an underachieving slacker who doesn't shoot for anything but passable. Until Amy (Simpson), the new employee, begins to work at the store Zack begins to jump all over her when he learns she'll date the next employee of the month.
While it shouldn't be too hard to work a bit harder at his job, Zack is known to have recurring fights with Vince (Shepard), a high profile cashier at the store as well. He wants to win Amy's heart as well, and being a much more experienced worker than Zack is obvious because of his seventeen employee of the month awards. Zack and Vince are now out to see who will earn Amy's heart.
My favorite character in the film is without a doubt Marcello Thedford (Semi). For some reason, from the second he walked into frame in this film his charm, wit, and cheery nature completely made me want more of him. Same with Andy Dick's character (Lon). Both of those characters at some points where more interesting than Cook and Shepard's characters.
Though besides Dick and Thedford having memorable performances, that doesn't excuse this movie for being cliche stock comedy material. We all know how it's going to end. I won't say, but you can probably guess. Very few comedies feel the need to step out of the predictable line, and just follow the steps to be a so-so, could've been better comedy.
Jessica Simpson's performance was nice, Cook's was enjoyable, Shepard's was amusing, but Thedford and Dick stole the show. There isn't a whole lot new or fresh with Employee of the Month, but its enjoyable. It has a Career Opportunities feel with it being shot almost entirely in a store which is a setting I've always loved in movies, and it has some interesting one liners dropped. Overall, it's okay.
Starring: Dane Cook, Jessica Simpson, Dax Shepard, Andy Dick, and Marcello Thedford. Directed by: Greg Coolidge.