Comedy | Netflix | Runtime: 101m | Rating: R
Written & Directed By: John Hamburg
Starring: Kevin Hart, Mark Wahlberg, Regina Hall, Andrew Santino, Che Tafari, Amentii Sledge, John Amos, Anna Maria Horsford, Jimmy O. Yang
Synopsis: A family man (Hart) finally finds time alone for himself after many years, and while doing so he reconnects with his old friend (Wahlberg) for a wild weekend that will give new meaning to the life he lives.
Watching the trailers for Me Time gives you a hefty serving of what this movie will spend its runtime delivering. It certainly follows the usual character arcs of redemption, romance, and friendship. All the while dispensing a buffet of crude jokes, physical humor, and ridiculous scenarios. It’s a typical buddy comedy for the most part and both Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg play to their extremely familiar comedic strengths. But if you watch Me Time for anything other than seeing Hart and Wahlberg teaming up for comical hijinks as essentially versions of themselves, then you are overestimating the intent of the film.
Me Time goes through the genre motions without a doubt. Wahlberg and Hart are both the exact same comical versions of themselves that we’ve been watching for years. And admittedly there is nothing special about their chemistry to make them any more appealing than Hart pairing with Dwayne Johnson, Ice Cube, or even Will Ferrell. On the other hand, and to their credit, you can tell these guys like each other and are having a good time in these simplistic roles which does boost the comedic effect a tad. Andrew Santino was the shining light of this film for me at least. He was hilarious and easily able to leave an impression with each scene. Something I was hoping to see from Regina Hall who I feel was drastically wasted as a cut-and-dry wife. She could have added so much more humor to this story had her character actually been given something to do.
The pace is relatively consistent as it goes through the journey of Kevin Hart’s family man character learning about himself, his bond with his kids, and his passion for his wife. All the while stealing turtles, pooping in beds, and being attacked by mountain lions. So, to its credit, Me Time does keep its foot on the comedic gas between its sentimental moments. There’s amusing action, comical banter, ridiculous situations and much more to keep you invested if you have a wider comedic taste. If you prefer high-brow intelligent humor, Me Time is not for you. It’s delightfully crude and pleasantly juvenile but still a good time. Just not as good as it could have been had the side characters been given more of an impression of the event the story. Something that could have pumped a bit more enthusiasm into the fun.
Grade: 70%
Anthony J. Digioia II © 2022 SilverScreen Analysis. All Rights Reserved.
