Ryan McNeil
I’m beginning to wonder if the trick to a good comedy is identity. Ever watch a comedy and just think to yourself that it’s “trying too hard”? I get the hunch that such instances come when a film sets out to make us laugh but doesn’t, it’s because the film doesn’t have a sense of self…and without that, there’s nothing for the audience to identify with, attach to, and ultimately be amused by.
Happily, not all hope is lost. 30 MINUTES OR LESS knows precisely what sort of movie it is…and that’s what helps it work.
Jesse Eisenberg plays Nick, a pizza delivery boy. He lives an unassuming life; He delivers pizzas in thirty minutes or less, pines for a lovely girl named Katie, and hangs out with her twin brother Chet (Aziz Ansari). He talks like someone who wants more, but if he’s doing anything about it we aren’t privy to it.
By contrast, we meet Dwayne (Danny McBride) who is doing something to help himself – even if it is wildly misguided. Dwayne wants to get his mitts on his father’s money, so like many a criminal before him he plots to kill a man for his money. To do so, he orders a pizza from Nick’s restaurant. When Nick shows up to deliver it, Dwayne and his friend Travis (Nick Swardson) strap a bomb to him.
At this point the math is simple: Nick will rob a bank to get money for Dwayne to pay a hit man to kill his father and gain an inheritance. If Nick tries anything sly or can’t get the job done in ten hours…..”boom”.
That notion of identity I alluded to in the intro is announced with authority during one of the film’s biggest action scenes. During a particularly exciting moment, the film’s soundtrack begins to blare out a pop hit from the 80’s. As those notes wail, one can’t help but smile as memories of similar films start flooding. The predicament of Nick and Chet could easily be played out by Lieutenants Riggs and Murtough. It could be played out by Axel Foley. It could be played out by John McLane. 30 MINUTES OR LESS is the sort of of buddy/crime caper that has seldom been seen since the Berlin Wall came down.
Part of how 30 MINUTES makes the format its own is how it shows how much an everyman can trip over the steps of robbery and extortion. Think about a film like OUT OF SIGHT and how charismatic Nick Foley is while holding up the bank. makes it look easy doesn’t he? Keep cool, act confident, be professional and you can get in and get out lickity-split. But of course, we aren’t all as suave as George Clooney, are we? What’s worse is that actually robbing the bank is just one step. I’ve never tried of course, but something tells me that if I were forced to jack a car and meet up for a drop like Nick does, that I’d fumble the job in the same way he does.
This is the second feature film directed by Ruben Fleischer, and his first film ZOMBIELAND, had a few of those retro flourishes too. It’s not like the guy is flat out copying slapstick comedies of the 80’s, nor is he making an homage. What he appears to be doing is mining them for the elements that still work, and updating the comedic rhythms with fresh delivery. So far with the two films, it’s worked rather well. The story tends to find the right rhythm, and in large part that’s because we don’t stand around letting a gag run itself into the ground…unlike some modern comedies.
Beyond the throwback structure, what makes 30 MINUTES OR LESS succeed as well as it does is the chemistry and performances turned in by Jesse Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari. The fact that they both bring the goods is encouraging for both actors. For Ansari, it’s great to see that he won’t always be playing Tom from Parks & Rec (Chet is less cocksure). For Eisenberg, it’s another step on his breakout path that he’s been walking down for two years now. He’s as funny as he was in films like ADVENTURELAND and ZOMBIELAND, but without the wimpiness. After playing the socially detached character of Mark Zucherberg, this was a choice follow-up.
Sure enough, 30 MINUTES OR LESS has a firm grip on its identity. That alone would bring the laughs and allow it to succeed. But what puts it over the top and raises it beyond a typical blue comedy is the way the film knows what it is, but so few of the characters know who they are. Nick deludes himself that he’s killing time as a pizza boy, Chet has to muck around in other people’s lives since he finds his own so unsatisfying, and Dwayne just knows that he wants more but hasn’t a clue how to do it through hard work.
Identity: It can avoid you making a royal mess of your life, and give an audience some great laughs too.
I haven’t seen this yet, but do you ever wonder if Jesse Eisenberg will, at some point in the next 10 years or so, age past this kind of signature role of his? I like the guy, but he always plays this combination of wuss and geek, and I’m thinking that in a few short years he’ll be too old to play the role effectively. Am I the only one who considers things like this?
I guess he could luck out and successfully pull off the Andrea Zuckerburg.
Check it out first and then reconsider your question. I think he’s actually taking solid steps to avoid being pigeonholed – his character in 30/LESS is more down to earth and “everyman” than any of his previous twerpy roles.
I think your question needs to be pointed more at someone like Michael Cera
I’ll check it out, but I tend to group these two together in my head, occasionally confusing one for the other even though I like most of Jesse Eisenberg’s movies and hardly like any of Michael Cera’s.
That’s the thing, between SOCIAL NETWORK and now this film, he’s really separated himsefl with a more unique persona. Tomorrow I’ll be seeing him in CONTAGION so I’ll be able to report this weekend as to whether or not he continues the trend.
I would have liked this film a lot more if it hadn’t focused on McBride/Swardsen so much. It felt like they sucked all of the funny off of the screen.
I hear you…but it also served a bit of a purpose. There are plenty of people out there who want to hit it big without actually putting in the work. Dwayne’s sense of entitlement was an honest touch, and lest we forget – what tipped the first domino in this wild story.