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I Don't Know What It Is, But It's Not Bird.

They’re everywhere. In fact, their numbers seem to be steadily climbing.

As a kid, it was incredibly difficult to avoid them. In fact, I was the poor bastard that was usually trotted out as a last resort. One of those sacrificial lambs encouraged (that should read forced) to just have some fun and give them a chance.

You’d think that I would have learned my lesson by the time I reached adulthood. You’d think I’d never again willingly spend another moment, not even a second, with another loud-mouthed, ignorant jerk.

You’d think.

I'm not going to lie. I love that shirt.
Tammy was actually worse than I expected. And I expected bad.  I was thinking charmingly bad, but this is just bad bad. Melissa McCarthy, for me, is on the clock. Time is running out on her once-amusing shtick.

Presented as a comedy, Tammy might actually be more at home being labeled a drama (if not an outright horror film). Tammy, after getting fired from a fast-food joint, comes home to find her husband is having an affair with a neighbor. She storms out, and along with her grandmother (an intermittently affable Susan Surandon), hits the road in an effort to deal with her crumbling personal life. Hijinks ensue, curse words are uttered, but damned if I didn’t care about any of it.

While I appreciate that this flick was a joint effort between McCarthy and her husband, first-time director Ben Falcone, that fun fact doesn’t trump how overwhlmingly abysmal this film is. I laughed a few times, and shockingly – my wife watched the whole thing – but it’s still such an uneven mess. Maybe it could have worked as an unrelentingly crude comedy (like The Heat, for example), or perhaps as a more straightforward drama with occasional funny bits (there are some valid themes worth exploring), but the simpulan product is an unholy mix of terrible jokes and lame attempts at saying something. When the heavy moments come, they feel out of place and ridiculous.


Speaking of out of place and ridiculous, here are the Yays and Boos. After the movie they asked me if they're really were any people named Tammy out there. I was honest. I said no. They’re all dead.


She just saw the box office numbers.
Yaaaaaaay!
  • Confession: I have killed an animal with my car (these weird flightless birds in Hawai'i exist solely to dart in front of your vehicle). What I said? Noooo! What I should have said? Maybe he just got the wind knocked out of him?
  • There was a pretty sweet Allman Brothers discussion and sing-a-long.
  • I guess any Gary Cole is better than no Gary Cole, right?
  • Speaking of Grown Men I Love Unconditionally...Mark Duplass is in this! And Nat Faxon, too. Love these guys...even, well...here.
  • Clearly they knew it was the best scene in the film, but despite the preview ruining it, I still really liked when she robs that chicken joint. Good times.
  • Kathy Bates always adds a level of class to just about anything, doesn't she? If only she would have a sledgehammer at Tammy's ankle.
  • And finally, even though I wasn't a fan of this one, I will still put my hands together for Melissa McCarthy. Currently she's riding a one-note high (or low), but I believe in this lady's talents. I do.
Booooooooo!
  • I love dumb jokes. I love bad movies. Somehow...I hated this.
  • I know it's part of the joke...but damn, dude: Tammy looks awful.
  • And seems to be really f--king stupid at times....
  • ...but was married and had a really nice house? Hmm.
  • Susan Surandon. Not her, not her performance....but her face. For years I've thought she looked too old to be playing whatever part she was playing. But here? She looks young. Waaaaaaaay too young. What the shit, Louise?
  • The dramatic turns. The half-baked we used to be close, Grandma! was bad enough, but the whole alcoholism was even worse. I think I need a drink.
  • Toni Collette must have lost a bet. Or her mind.
  • Dan Aykroyd. Check that. Not enough Dan Aykroyd.
  • And finally...my wife, Mrs. . She sleeps through just about everything. Everything. But a shitty movie about awful people? Wide awake. Didn't even waver for a second.

Well, it's almost that time, so hopefully, unlike Tammy (and just about everyone in this film) you've been good this year. As far as I can tell, not only is does being a rotten a-hole cement your place on the naughty list, but so does associating with them, too.

I'd say I learned that lesson as a kid, but clearly I didn't.
And if you're still reading this? Well...

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