I watched 'due date' last night just to unwind a bit. Why did I choose to watch this? Well the Netflix description was pretty intriguing. It says a guy name Peter 'lands on the 'no-fly' list, forcing him to drive across the country with an irritating slacker. That's darkly amusing because he needed to fly to meet his pregnant wife and I'm a fan of black comedy. I also saw that Zach Galifianakis was in this film, and even though I find his type of humor a bit contrived, I still decided to give it a shot.
The other star and indeed the other leading actor here is Robert Downey Jr, just to give you and idea of what to expect.
This film was released on November 5, 2010, so you could call it a classic and since I'm on a movie run to watch things I might have watched in a younger body, it fit the criteria of things to watch for me.
Now what exactly is this film about? Peter played by Robert Downey is an architect who has to travel to meet his pregnant wife in Los Angeles. Close to the airport, his cab gets in a minor accident with another driver carrying the passenger in the person of Zach Galifianakis who plays Ethan Tremblay. Ethan uses medication for his glaucoma, but not just any type. He uses marijuana and of course he takes this prohibited substance with him in his luggage. These actors have a little conversation just as they come out with Ethan trying to come off as friendly in his mental way and Zach as the guy who sees Ethan as the diva who has lost touch with reality. In the time it took for them to exchange their 'pleasantries' and get acquainted, another accident happens and their luggage gets exchanged at the curb. You can guess what happens when Peter tries to get 'glaucoma medication' he does not own past airport security.
Surprisingly though, he manages to extricate himself past this incident but meets Ethan again who has no sense of plane or life etiquette as the guy tries to store his hand luggage in the plane. With his belly and groin in Peter's face, they have the fight that's more definitive this time and gets both of them on the no fly list. With a pregnant wife at hand and no credit cards or money, Peter has to join Ethan in the rental car on a long road trip to 'Hollywood' where Ethan hopes to star in 'Two and a half men' and give his father's cremated remains a final home at the Grand canyons.
This is where the real fun and laughs begin. This duo are destined for so much bad adventure, it's so funny how much one person could have made it that far without killing himself or someone else. They get into accidents, as Ethan is a deep sleeper especially when high and drives them to the Mexico border by mistake. This film is quite blasphemous as they mistakenly drink Ethan's father's remains when one of Peter's friends mistakes it for coffee. The line where Peter says 'I'm sorry we drank your dad' to which Ethan responds with 'We still have about eight cups of him left' will stay with me for a while. I'm chuckling right now at the insanity of it all.
I have to say at some point I considered turning it off and looking for something else to watch because of how bad they were for themselves and each other, but I had already invested too much time and this review had to be written. The film generally makes me think of wild teenagers, only this time it's actual grown men acting more than a bit depraved. They manage to get to the hospital even though Ethan mistakenly shoots Peter in the leg after they'd escaped from the Mexican border, just enough to get to see his wife before Peter faints, so that counts as a happy ending. Also, Ethan does make it in Hollywood, a term Peter despises and they somehow end up becoming best friends. That's something I would not recommend for them, but hey, life happens :)
I will rate this a 7/10 because of how the dirt in it. However, it had it's funny moments and was definitely entertaining which was my goal at the time of watching.
Cheers!