Identity Thief
Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) stars in this comedy caper as a good-natured Joe forced to hunt down the woman (Oscar-nominated Bridesmaids actress Melissa McCarthy) who stole his identity - before her shopping spree completely empties his bank accounts. From the director of Horrible Bosses.
Unlimited funds have allowed Diana (McCarthy) to live it up on the outskirts of Miami, where the queen of retail buys whatever strikes her fancy. There's only one glitch: the ID she's using to finance these sprees reads "Sandy Bigelow Patterson" and it belongs to an accounts rep (Bateman) who lives halfway across the country. With only one week to hunt down the con-artist before his world implodes, the real Sandy heads south to confront the woman with an all-access pass to his life.
- Director:
- Seth Gordon ('Horrible Bosses', 'Four Holidays', 'The King of Kong')
- Writer:
- Michael MarkowitzJohn Francis DaleyJonathan M. Goldstein
- Cast:
- Jason BatemanMelissa McCarthyJohn ChoJon FavreauGenesis RodriguezEric StonestreetAmanda PeetRobert Patrick
Reviews & comments
Flicks, Adam Fresco
flicksDirector Seth Gordon’s follow-up to Horrible Bosses takes another slight sit-com plot and pumps it to full-length proportions. Sandy (Jason Bateman) travels from Denver to Florida to confront Diana (Melissa McCarthy), who’s stolen his identity and is living it large courtesy of his cash. Thanks to inept police, the stars end up an odd couple on a road trip akin to Planes, Trains and Automobiles – with Bateman in the put-upon straight-man Steve Martin role, and McCarthy a sociopathic version of John Candy. But without a decent script on which to hang their shtick, the pair is too often left floundering.
Identity Crisis
Apart from the occasional giggle. Identity Thief poses an improbable series of events and attempts to juggle them into a story-line of believable circumstances. If you have to see it, it won't disappoint if you don't have high hopes to start with. I thought the acting saved the film from being a total flop but still doesn't save it from my 2/5.
Disappointing
I have to agree with Adam's review for FLICKS...I can really only give this movie 2 stars I'm afraid. I was looking for a few good laughs...and given the cast and the plot scenario I expected to snort coke up my nose (cola I mean) or choke on my popcorn with laughter at least once or twice...but that never eventuated. Loved Melissa McCarthy in...
Less Humor; More Drama-bomb
I had the same thought as everyone else when the trailer came out: "This looks so funny!", but then I went to go see the movie and... it... wasn't... so funny. I expected slapstick comedy and funny dialogues; the trailer /screamed/ COMEDY, but it didn't have enough. It had such a big potential to be funny and the actors had history of comedy films, but this...
Variety
pressWith Identity Thief, Melissa McCarthy proves she's got what it takes to carry a feature, however meager the underlying material.
Total Film
pressMelissa McCarthy’s over-the-top performance as a low-rung grifter enlivens what is otherwise a groan-worthy odd-couple comedy.
Time Out
pressNo matter how may times Identity Thief switches tracks, nothing works — it fails as a star vehicle, a recession-era satire, a WTF white-collar-grunt revenge tale, a "Midnight Run"–style buddy flick, a gross-out laughfest and a bathetic tale of broken souls. No amount of stolen guises can fix it.
The New York Times
pressAs is the case with other unsatisfactory diversions, it is entirely possible to ignore the worst parts of this movie... and just wait for Ms. McCarthy and Mr. Bateman to do their things.
The Guardian
pressIt is reliant on McCarthy's comedy chops and her ability to deliver improv-type character material, but almost every single one of her scenes looks like an outtake.
Los Angeles Times
pressIts stars steal so many laughs from such improbable places that the bumps in this revenge/road trip farce can be mostly forgiven, though not forgotten.
Hollywood Reporter
pressAnother rough comic movie road trip helps give car travel a bad name.
Chicago Sun-Times
pressIt wants to be "Midnight Run" meets "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," but it carries little of the dramatic heft and real-world semi-plausibility of those much superior efforts.
A.V. Club
pressIdentity Thief establishes its priorities: Expansive character business is front and center; actual character-building is in the margins, almost off the map.
Flicks, Adam Fresco
flicksDirector Seth Gordon’s follow-up to Horrible Bosses takes another slight sit-com plot and pumps it to full-length proportions. Sandy (Jason Bateman) travels from Denver to Florida to confront Diana (Melissa McCarthy), who’s stolen his identity and is living it large courtesy of his cash. Thanks to inept police, the stars end up an odd couple on a road trip akin to Planes, Trains and Automobiles – with Bateman in the put-upon straight-man Steve Martin role, and McCarthy a sociopathic version of John Candy. But without a decent script on which to hang their shtick, the pair is too often left floundering.
Variety
pressWith Identity Thief, Melissa McCarthy proves she's got what it takes to carry a feature, however meager the underlying material.
Total Film
pressMelissa McCarthy’s over-the-top performance as a low-rung grifter enlivens what is otherwise a groan-worthy odd-couple comedy.
Time Out
pressNo matter how may times Identity Thief switches tracks, nothing works — it fails as a star vehicle, a recession-era satire, a WTF white-collar-grunt revenge tale, a "Midnight Run"–style buddy flick, a gross-out laughfest and a bathetic tale of broken souls. No amount of stolen guises can fix it.
The New York Times
pressAs is the case with other unsatisfactory diversions, it is entirely possible to ignore the worst parts of this movie... and just wait for Ms. McCarthy and Mr. Bateman to do their things.
The Guardian
pressIt is reliant on McCarthy's comedy chops and her ability to deliver improv-type character material, but almost every single one of her scenes looks like an outtake.
Los Angeles Times
pressIts stars steal so many laughs from such improbable places that the bumps in this revenge/road trip farce can be mostly forgiven, though not forgotten.
Hollywood Reporter
pressAnother rough comic movie road trip helps give car travel a bad name.
Chicago Sun-Times
pressIt wants to be "Midnight Run" meets "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," but it carries little of the dramatic heft and real-world semi-plausibility of those much superior efforts.
A.V. Club
pressIdentity Thief establishes its priorities: Expansive character business is front and center; actual character-building is in the margins, almost off the map.
Identity Crisis
Apart from the occasional giggle. Identity Thief poses an improbable series of events and attempts to juggle them into a story-line of believable circumstances. If you have to see it, it won't disappoint if you don't have high hopes to start with. I thought the acting saved the film from being a total flop but still doesn't save it from my 2/5.
Disappointing
I have to agree with Adam's review for FLICKS...I can really only give this movie 2 stars I'm afraid. I was looking for a few good laughs...and given the cast and the plot scenario I expected to snort coke up my nose (cola I mean) or choke on my popcorn with laughter at least once or twice...but that never eventuated. Loved Melissa McCarthy in...
Less Humor; More Drama-bomb
I had the same thought as everyone else when the trailer came out: "This looks so funny!", but then I went to go see the movie and... it... wasn't... so funny. I expected slapstick comedy and funny dialogues; the trailer /screamed/ COMEDY, but it didn't have enough. It had such a big potential to be funny and the actors had history of comedy films, but...
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