​FILMS

dirty grandpa

Just about everyone is dirty in Dirty Grandpa!

2016 review number 16:

Dirty Grandpa: (Comedy): 48 out of 100: The title says it all! In fact, it should be called Dirty Movie because just about every character has a filthy mind and the majority of the situations they find themselves in lend themselves to crude sex jokes. Most of the jokes are related to sex so if it's variety you desire in your humour, you will have to see another comedy. I don't mind gutter humour but not at the expense of other forms of comedy. There are similarities with the recently released Sisters but at least that movie had the sense to include other types of comedy.

 

Jason Kelly (Zac Efron) is an uptight lawyer who is only one week away from marrying controlling and domineering Meredith (Julianne Hough). Jason's grandfather, Richard (Robert De Niro) is at his wife's funeral and asks Jason to be his chaperone to Florida. After debating the issue with his own son and Jason's father, David (Dermot Mulroney), he reluctantly agrees to let Jason drive his father. Little does Jason know that his grandfather has plans to explore and indulge in things he hadn't been able to do while he was married to his wife. Along the way, they meet up with college students Shadia (Zoey Deutch) and Lenore (Aubrey Plaza) who party with them during their spring break.

 

There are moments that provide genuine laughter but the initial impact of the sex jokes wears a bit thin due to their repetition. The biggest embarrassment is seeing an actor the calibre of De Niro hamming it up as the titular character. He was definitely in it for the pay cheque! If it wasn't for him in the movie, this would be reminiscent of one of those teen sex comedies that was rolling off the production line in the 1980s.

 

The script by John M. Philips is juvenile, one that would make you question if it was written by a horny teenager. The shock value of hearing De Niro utter lines like "I wanna f*^%, f*^%, f*^%, f*^%, f*^%" dissipates when most of his lines comprise sexual innuendo and puns. Efron is trying to escape from his High School Musical days but if he wishes to be regarded as a serious actor, he has to make better choices with his roles as he is still the hot bod of the movie.

 

Quite a few of the scenes are unnecessary as they are unfunny and extend the caricature of the characters, especially that of Grandpa's. It's not a totally lost cause however, with several scenes springing to life to entertain the audience. It's just a shame that the story reduces itself to dialogue about sex talk when there could have been other avenues explored. Let's just hope that this is not one of De Niro's final performances as he deserves better than being remembered as Dirty Grandpa.

 

Starring Robert De Niro, Zac Efron, Zoey Deutch, Aubrey Plaza, Julianne Hough and Dermot Mulroney

(102 minutes)

Parental advice: Coarse language, nudity, sexual references, drug use and adult themes

Additional scene during or after credits: Yes, a few of the major characters are celebrating a christening when they engage in a conversation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOAn83vOZLk (Movie trailer)

 

(Reviewed on Wednesday 27th January, 2016)

For my latest reviews, go to this link: http://mlaimlai2.wix.com/magical-movie-review