Danny (Paul Rudd) and Wheeler (Seann William Scott) work as P. R. reps for Minotaur Energy Drink. Danny and Wheeler travel to high schools telling kids why drinking Minotaur is better than doing drugs. Danny is 35 years old and hates his job and the fact that he’s done nothing with his life. Wheeler loves that he makes money dressing up as a minotaur and has no ties to anyone or anything. Danny’s increasing unhappiness with life has affected his relationship with Beth (Elizabeth Banks), his lawyer girlfriend. When she breaks up with him, he takes out his frustrations on the job and gets himself and Wheeler in trouble with the law.
After an altercation with a school security guard and a tow-truck driver, Danny and Wheeler are sentenced to community service in lieu of 30 days in jail. They’re placed with Sturdy Wings, a child mentoring service run by former drug addict, Gayle Sweeney (Jane Lynch). Knowing full-well that neither Danny or Wheeler would be mentoring kids if it weren’t for their obligations to the court, Sweeney sets them up with two of her least promising children: Augie (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), a teenager addicted to live-action roleplaying and Ronnie (Bobb’e J Thompson), a 10 year old African American with a foul mouth and an affinity for women’s breasts.
Role Models may sound like one of the many Judd Apatow comedies that have been released lately. It even stars many of the same people from Apatow-related movies — Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad), Jane Lynch (The 40 Year Old Virgin), Paul Rudd (Knocked Up) and Elizabeth Banks (The 40 Year Old Virgin) — but the overall tone is different. This comedy is less off-the-wall in nature and slightly more human in its portrayal of young people with problems.
Rudd and Scott’s characters don’t like each other much, but their performances seem to indicate that the two had fun working together. Their on-screen comedic timing makes for some hilarious moments. Mintz-Plasse, who played the iconic McLovin’ in Superbad, is very effective as the shy and misunderstood Augie.
Role Models is a formulaic comedy but everyone involved knows that and has fun with the concept anyway. It certainly won’t win any awards for originality or substance, but it’s funny and it made me laugh out loud a lot. I certainly can’t say that about too many comedies and, as such, I highly recommend it.
3.5 out of 5.0 stars
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