A good underdog movie is long overdue, and Our Idiot Brother is mighty timely with its low-man-on-the-totem-pole humor. It offers comic relief that feels like a therapeutic balm after this past summer's dumbass misfortunes.
When the film premiered at Sundance in January, it drew comparisons with last year's understated and likewise bighearted The Kids Are All Right, a film not all that similar in plot but akin in cultural savvy.
Directed by Jesse Peretz (The Ex), the ensemble comedy introduces us to bearded organic farmer Ned Mortimer (Paul Rudd), a cheery and good-natured pacifist who winds up in jail for selling marijuana to a deceptive cop. On his release, Ned's too-trusting nature and foot-in-mouth honesty cause a world of woe for himself and his high-strung sisters (Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel and Emily Mortimer).
"Everyone has one," as the tagline suggests, and Ned represents that well-meaning family member who just can't get his act together. But he's much more. As it shakes out, Ned's not really such a dope after all. He's optimistic, principled and a natural people person. It's our f-ed up society that ultimately dons the dunce cap in the film.
Sure, it's not a new concept, but it's one that never gets old. From Will Ferrell to Dostoevsky to the silly guy in the tarot deck, we love ourselves some wise fools, archetypes like Ned who give us vicarious amusement and vindication — they reflect us at our best, worst and most real by going against social expectations and living in the moment.
Paul Rudd's Ned is a stellar addition to this lovable-loser hall of fame. His portrayal is as subtle as it is charming, portraying the misunderstood idealist with the honest respect he deserves; he refrains from going over the top in cliché stoner fashion. Instead, Rudd's performance feels as comfortable and familiar as the Navajo-printed shorts he wears throughout the movie.
Our Idiot Brother also succeeds in its satire of well-intentioned phonies. The script, by director Peretz's sister Evgenia Peretz and David Schisgall, pokes fun at counter-culture hypocrisies and the socially conscious affluent.
In the film, phony No. 1 is Liz's husband, Dylan (Steve Coogan), a documentary filmmaker who warps his household into a Third Reich hinterland of NPR-friendly enrichments and politically correct abstinence. From African reed-playing lessons to "no-screens" rules, he's sadly oblivious to his poor tortured son, River (Matthew Mindler), who just wants to bounce on the trampoline with fun Uncle Ned.
Another piece of work comes to us via Ned's ex-girlfriend, organic farmer and dred-head Janet (Kathryn Hahn), who cares more about the mood swings of her livestock than people around her. She unflinchingly boots Ned off the farm after he's released from jail, and when he returns, he finds a brain-cell-diminished nice-guy replacement in the way of the hilarious Billy (T. J. Miller).
Occasional broad strokes aside, the cast has a comfy chemistry, that in-the-room intimacy you get from Judd Apatow's best moments. Rudd and the hot-sister threesome establish a familiar family dynamic, even if sweet alcoholic mom Ilene (Shirley Knight) is neglected amid the dysfunctional drama. She has one crucial scene when she relates with Ned about how his sisters don't have time for people like them. The difference is that she's checked out and Ned hasn't.
Banks is supremely bitchy but believably flawed as the alpha-female magazine journalist Miranda. Deschanel is her usual sexy cutie-pie self as the bisexual hipster Natalie, and Emily Mortimer convincingly runs the gamut of conflicted emotions as Liz, whose yuppie-control-freak-mom-ness gets the better of her.
In addition, we get co-stars from Parks and Rec fame playing pivotal outside-the-fam figures. Rashida Jones is fiercely hilarious as Natalie’s lesbian lawyer lover and Adam Scott is an affable everyman and Miranda’s friend-zoned neighbor. Both family friends relate to Ned more than his own flesh and blood, showing us how we can’t overcome the idiotic typecasting of our family unit.
Our Idiot Brother is not without its flaws. Some character choices are inconsistent and seem to be there to move the plot along, and stuff gets tied up too neatly — but not pushed to the point of Hollywood absurdity.
For a feel-good comedy, it succeeds and will stay with you after you leave the theater — just like that relative who won't get a job already.
This article appears in Aug 25-31, 2011.