Fast-paced fun dashes through loopy plot
Game Night
(out of 4) Starring Rachel McAdams, Jason Bateman. Directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein. Opens Friday in GTA theatres. 100 minutes. R The game is afoot and it’s actually quite a fun and quirky adventure.
Super-competitive husband and wife Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams) are used to dominating their weekly “game night” events with their closest friends.
Then along comes Brooks (Kyle Chandler), who excels at gamesmanship and at besting younger brother Max throughout their entire lives and suddenly the stakes get higher.
Max, no longer content to play Donnie to Brooks’ Mark Wahlberg, is determined to beat his brother at his own game: a staged mystery which includes Brooks’ kidnapping. The prize: Brooks’ vintage car, one he well knows Max has always coveted.
Mark Perez’s script has more than a few twists and turns and a major part of the fun for the audience is trying to figure out what’s real and what isn’t.
There are plenty of plot points that don’t bear up to closer scrutiny in the aftermath but a big part of the film’s success is a result of pairing Bateman and McAdams.
Bateman has a natural flair for comedy but it’s McAdams who’s a pleasant surprise here, a partner who’s equally engaging and doesn’t settle for playing second fiddle. Together, their onscreen chemistry is a huge bonus.
Some of the remaining cast don’t fare quite as well, including Billy Magnussen as the vacuous Ryan. Fortunately, Ryan finally puts aside his propensity for dating bimbos and, in praise of older women, hooks up with Sarah (a wonderfully droll Sharon Horgan).
Lamorne Morris of TV’s New Girl is annoying in a different way as Kevin, who’s insecurity drives partner Michelle (Kylie Bunbury, the lead in the short-lived Fox series Pitch) to distraction. But there’s a nice payoff involving someone who may or may not be Denzel Washington.
Special mention goes to Jesse Plemons, whose carefully calibrated performance as creepy next-door neighbour Gary is a comedic marvel that will make you laugh as you squirm.
The soundtrack is cool and the script is filled with plenty of hijinks and ribald humour throughout along with a few hilariously cringeworthy moments.
Overall, there’s an infectious sense of goofy fun that allows Game Night to rise above some of its more outlandish plot points and a pleasantly redemptive conclusion that’ll bring a warm smile.