Hit and Run

I'm not a fan of either Kristen Bell or Dax Shepard, the stars of this movie.  Shepard is also one of the directors, and the other is David Palmer, whose work I do not know.  Having two directors is a screaming neon warning sign for any movie.  In short, I had plenty of reasons to avoid this movie.

Yet I went. 

Two things drew me to the theater the other night:  The trailer and the early scuttlebutt on the movie made it seem quirky, and in an interview Dax Shepard likened it to Smokey and the Bandit, a truly terrible Burt Reynold film that I nonetheless recall with embarrassed fondness. 

I'm glad I decided to give this one a chance.  It is a very odd duck indeed, one I should have hated, a film whose two main stars displayed an acting range only slightly broader than the emotional range of my desk, a plot that was just an excuse to bring odd actors together, and all the emotional honesty of a politician stumping for re-election. Despite all that, I had a great time watching it, I laughed frequently and loudly, and I'd love to see an unrated, extended cut make it to Blu-Ray.

The supporting actors were a big part of what worked for me.  Kristin Chenoweth was wonderful in every second she was on the screen.  Tom Arnold's character had only a few notes, but Arnold hit them all well.  Bradley Cooper delivered a wonderfully strange performance as a bad guy with issues.

What worked most for me, though, were the dialog and the story once all the characters were together. Dax Shepard delivered far more as a writer than an actor, though to be fair his limited character was frequently appealing and at times even interesting. 

With surprise, I recommend you check out Hit and Run.