The comedy juggernaut known as Dane Cook has picked up considerable steam over the past two years, and while I consider myself a fan of his incredible stand-up, I can’t claim that I know exactly why. His ventures into film, with the exception of a bit part as the Waffler in Mystery Men, have been largely mediocre. In his most recent effort, Employee of the Month, Cook plays Zack, a slacker working at a warehouse superstore who ups his productivity when a pretty new cashier (Jessica Simpson) with a supposed history of sleeping with the employee of the month transfers to his store. The movie’s biggest problem comes from the fact that, in a setting with oversized packages of hygiene products and cheese, the only thing that doesn’t come in bulk is laughter.
The obstacle for Zack in securing his employee of the month plaque is Vince (Dax Shepard), a vicious suckup who has won the award for 17 straight months. Win number 18 earns Vince a year-old car and a shot at mid-level management. But nookie is a better motivator, as Zack decides to start showing up to work on time and actually…you know, doing his job and stuff.
Cook does an admirable job acting the part, pulling off the right amount of sarcastic charm to make his character someone worth supporting. Unfortunately, the script is too shallow for even Cook’s charisma to save. The screenwriters seem less interested in being funny than in making senseless references (the store manager and his brother are named Glen Gary and Glen Ross, and Cook’s character quotes “Piano Man” in a decent throwaway line) that make the audience feel like they’re in an intelligent comedy.
Simpson, who hasn’t learned her lesson from The Dukes of Hazzard, is dressed in low-cut tops throughout the movies; perhaps the directors thought her chest could distract from her terrible acting. Shepard gives respectable effort on some physical comedy, but he’s placed next to Efren Ramirez, who’s a stone-cold bore. Anyone would seem funny next to him. There are a few spotty chuckles squeezed from the supporting cast of workers at the superstore, but they can’t distract from the feeling that you’re left wandering lost in the aisles, never finding what you came for.
Rating: * * of 5
Stop seeing bad movies, fool.
:)
- KA
Not my choice…I wanted to see “The Science of Sleep” or “The Departed.”