Recently, unless your film is called THE INCREDIBLES, putting the adjective "incredible" in your movie's title has not worked out too well. Both INCREDIBLE HULK movies were either mediocre or frankly terrible (sorry, mutant poodle) and EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE was embarrassingly awful. Not only does it make you look foolish, it makes it very easy for critics to take shots at your film. Unfortunately, what I'm getting at is although the magnificent Steves (Carell and Buscemi, though they're sadly not called this in the movie) look beyond fabulous in all their promotional photos, THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE does little too buck the trend of these not-so-incredible, "INCREDIBLE" movies.
Burt Wonderstone (Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Buscemi) are two wildly successful magicians, friends since grade school, in Las Vegas, performing their show, "A Magical Friendship," for countless audiences over many years. However, the act has become stale and rote and a new, rebellious street magician (a la Criss Angel) named, you guessed it, Steve! Grey (Jim Carrey) has become a looming threat to Burt and Anton's formulaic, though immensely successful show. As audience attendance dwindles, Burt and Anton look for new ways to spice up their act and compete with Grey. This ultimately leads to the pair performing a David Blaine-esque "hot-box" stunt/illusion, which results in a massive flip-out by Wonderstone, a severe injury to Marvelton, and what seems to be the end of the duo's partnership. Alone, and overshadowed by Steve Grey, Wonderstone must find a way to get back on top of the Las Vegas magic world -- a task that will prove neither easy nor pretty.
As a comedy, THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE is, like many of its "incredible" predecessors, mediocre at best. The laughs come few and far between and most of the material feels as old and worn out as Wonderston and Marvelton's act. What the film ultimately boils down to is far too many sex-related jokes and gross-out humor -- which I guess is what is to be expected by a director (Don Scardino) who's, although being a fairly distinguished television director, most noteworthy film prior to this was the 1980 joint CRUISING with Al Pacino which few liked and many gay activists protested.
What damages THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE's comedic resonance more than anything is not its direction or script, but its HORRENDOUS casting. Burt Wonderstone is arrogant, self-deluded, and, surprisingly, not the sharpest guillotine cutting a lovely assistant in half. While this role would have been perfect for someone like Will Ferrell who has made a career at playing dim-witted narcissists, for Carell, who's more comfortable playing the clueless guy or the nice guy, it just feels off. Steve Buscemi, who is always awkward (and that's often what I love most about Steve Buscemi), simply feels lost and out of place completely. Jim Carrey is allowed to really air out his insanity and it makes for some of the better bits of the film. Sadly, it's hard to shake the fact that Carrey is 51 years old and, to quote Roger Murtaugh, is "too old for this shit."
The only truly redeeming feature of the film's atrocious casting is its supporting players. Olivia Wilde, as the beautiful assistant who is treated as little more than a sex object by her male counterparts while being as, if not more talented than any of them, is wonderful in her minuscule amount of screentime. James Gandolfini is also hilarious as ludicrously wealthy and appropriately named casino owner Doug Munny and has an amazing ability to say the most terrible things to people with a smile on his face. But the cream of the crop is the legendary Alan Arkin as the aging inspiration for Burt and Anton's magical careers, Rance Holloway. Where the other cast members have the comedic timing of a pubescent schoolboy trying to make the head cheerleader laugh, Arkin rattles off his hilarious quips and observations with ease. He has this kind of misty-eyed elegance and majesty that prevents you from taking your eyes off of him anytime he's on screen.
Simply, the THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE, well, just isn't. And I know that's an incredibly trite phrase that I'm sure every critic from here to Las Vegas has used. But when a film calls itself incredible, it better deliver. And although it provides a few laughs, BURT WONDERSTONE does little to distinguish itself as anything new. It's simply the same old story about a delusional, egotistical idiot who has it all, loses it all, then changes and gets it all back. It's basically TALLADEGA NIGHTS with magicians. But whereas Will Ferrell produced the endearing and infinitely quotable Ricky Bobby, Carell struggles to make the transition from obnoxious womanizer to sensitive soul believable. If the film did anything, however, it was reinforce my belief that Alan Arkin is still, and I mean this in every sense of the word, absolutely incredible.
4 out of 10
