Masterminds

Jared Hess struck gold with 2004’s Napoleon Dynamite and 2006’s Nacho Libre remains a favorite comedy of mine. His films since then have quickly faded into obscurity and failed to reach the cult status of his early career. Masterminds is his latest comedy and falls directly in line with his previous work. If you’ve seen any of his past films, you know exactly what kind of comedy you’re in for.

The film is loosely based on the 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery in which $17 million was stolen by employee and vault supervisor David Ghantt with the help of his “girlfriend” Kelly Campbell and her friend Steve Chambers. Zach Galifianakis stars as Ghantt, with Kristen Wiig and Owen Wilson taking on the roles of his conspirators. They essentially pull off the impossible, despite their stupidity, and rob Loomis Fargo of the bank’s money, but while David believes he’s doing it out of love with Kelly, Steve has a different agenda and will use David in any way possible to get the money.

Masterminds is an awkward comedy with few laughs that mostly capitalize on the over-the-top nature of Galifianakis’ character. He’s a bumbling buffoon who is taken advantage of by nearly everyone else yet still manages to come out unscathed in every situation. It’s nothing we haven’t seen time and time again in the genre, and unfortunately this film doesn’t do it particularly well. The humor pushes the limits of randomness as attempt to be funny just because of how ridiculous or outlandish something is. What worked a decade ago clearly doesn’t cut it for today’s age.

There are a few humorous moments. Kate McKinnon, who plays David’s fiance Jandice, is good for a couple of deadpan laughs, and so is Jason Sudeikis as the skilled assassin Mike McKinney who enjoys the thrill of the hunt of his fellow man. These moments are few and far between, however. The rest of the film is painfully dull as not even the talents of its comedic cast can save it from the lackluster humor.

If you’ve enjoyed Jared Hess’ recent offerings then there’s a likely chance you’ll enjoy Masterminds, too. It’s exactly what you would expect from the director. His style of humor hasn’t changed over the years. Unfortunately for this film, mine has.