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| John (Wahlberg) and Ted (voiced by MacFarlane) |
Directed by Seth MacFarlane
Produced by Jason Clark, John Jacobs, Seth MacFarlane, Scott Stuber, and Wellesley Wild
Written by Seth MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin, and Wellesley Wild
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, and Seth MacFarlane
*1/2
Seth MacFarlane's directorial debut is akin to his hit animated television series Family Guy. In other words, it is hit and miss. After wishing his teddy bear would come to life, John Bennett (Wahlberg) grows up with a talking bear called Ted (voiced by MacFarlane). The main problem with living with a bear at 35 is that John also has a long-term girlfriend Lori Collins (Kunis). She wants him to become a responsible, mature companion, but Ted wants him to continue living their party lifestyle. This conflict forces them to split up. However, through several (mostly uninteresting) twists, the couple are reunited when they must save Ted from a lunatic childhood fan. In the end, the rift is mended, and the threesome are left to live happily ever after.
This film was just not for me. Sure, it is funny in parts. There are no shortage of jokes. The problem is that a lot of them are not very funny. Of course, the film also feels like it was put on autopilot, yet it feels overlong as well. I just was not interested in what was happening. It doesn't seem like there was enough here for a feature film. The gimmicky bear grows tiresome after the first thirty minutes, which left me grasping for something to enjoy. Wahlberg, Kunis, and even MacFarlane do perform admirably, even if Wahlberg is miscast, but it was not meant to be. Many people like this movie; I just didn't. See it for a laugh or two. Perhaps you'll find it funnier than I did.
Oscar Potential: None
Sorry you didn't like it! I really want to see this one, though as I hate Family Guy and find the show terribly unfunny I may end up not liking Ted either.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry too. I wanted to like it, but it was more obnoxious than funny. I'm not a fan of Family Guy either, which is probably why I didn't care for the film.
DeleteWahlberg is game for this type of comedy and he makes every single one of his scenes with Ted, feel real as if Ted himself, was a real-life teddy bear come to life. This also adds a lot more to the humor of this flick that really worked for me considering I’m not a huge fan of Family Guy. Good review Josh.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dan! I thought Wahlberg was good in the film, but I couldn't quite get past the age difference between him and Kunis. That aside, I did like his performance.
DeleteI'm right there with you on this. Had a few decent laughs but not a hell of a lot more than that. All in all, a pretty long waste of time (seriously, that kidnapping subplot? Come on).
ReplyDeleteThat kidnapping subplot was the worst. If not for that, I probably would've given the film a higher rating.
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