Budget-conscious Sandy Patterson (Jason Bateman) is shocked to discover that his credit cards have all maxed out, and he apparently has a salon appointment booked on the other side of the country – he immediately suspects foul play.
By Keeva Stratton.
When he is taken into police custody for an outstanding Florida arrest warrant, it is plainly evident that he has been the victim of identity theft, as a mug-shot reveals other ‘Sandy’ (Melissa McCarthy) is, in fact, a woman living in Florida.
In a desperate bid to keep his job as an accountant and his personal credit rating, Sandy heads to Miami to confront the thief, only to find a woman who is far more complex than the caricatured villain he’d imagined. The other ‘Sandy’ has her own debts to pay, and the debt collectors (comprised of a mismatched combination of two very sleek and one rather hillbilly hit-men) industriously chase the Sandys across the country.
Identity Thief brings an idiosyncratic comedic slant to an empathetic tale. It takes two essentially black and white characters—one good and one evil—and reveals the very human layers, nuances and motivations that make them both equally likeable as well as flawed.
Judging by the laughter filling the cinema, the comedy certainly hit the right note with many—just not with this reviewer. I found the film to be a poor cousin to Bateman and McCarthy’s recent offerings, not quite hitting ‘laugh out loud’ form.
Melissa McCarthy’s bordering on tragic portrayal of a woman whose broken upbringing sent her down the wrong path was, at times, a little too sad. In the end, I just couldn’t bring myself to laugh at or with a woman who I felt sorry for.
Bateman was the perfect comedy straight man, but the lines and the situations that buttressed his performance simply weren’t funny enough. Someone stole the humour in this one, and replaced it with an OK concoction that married slapstick with a moral tale.
Never judge a book by its cover, and apparently never judge a movie by its trailer; Identity Thief promised fun, but ultimately fizzled.
Directed by: Seth Gordon
Starring: Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy
Rating: MA
Runtime: 111min
Release Date: 04 April
Reviewer rating: 2.5/5
