The Change-Up Is Disgusting and Forgettable

The opening scene of The Change-Up sealed the movie’s fate in my eyes. The body-switching comedy is as raunchy as you can get, having babies projectile crap into the face of Jason Bateman and putting Ryan Reynolds in bed with a disturbed pregnant lady. Let’s make one thing clear; shock does not equal humor.

In a nutshell, Dave (Bateman) and Mitch (Reynolds) wake up in each other’s bodies one morning, and they have to somehow live the other’s life until they can figure out how to switch back. The film goes down the R-rated road, an approach that is confusing. It doesn’t help the movie; all I know is the film could have done without some of the more outlandish gags. I find myself still capable of recommending The Change-Up, but not to everyone. This movie is, oddly enough, more suited for people who aren’t old enough to get in the theater to see it:  teenagers love this kind of gross-out humor.

Towards the third act, the film changes gears, and the emotional story comes into play, but by then it’s too little too late. Suddenly becoming sentimental doesn’t erase the earlier flaw of shooting crap into someone’s mouth.

Bateman and Reynolds deliver basic performances. We’ve never quite seen Bateman be so mean-spirited, but it’s nothing to write home about. There’s just nothing that really stands out about this movie. Yes, there’s nudity, yes there are some laughs, but ultimately this is forgettable. This is one of those movies you go and rent for a dollar (and I say rent only because I do not endorse pirating).