BRAD’S STATUS

Cert Running time

This desperately dull essay on middle-aged angst sees Ben Stiller at his most serious, sentimental and unfunny. I’ve never been a fan of Ben Stiller’s comic turns and he’s even less bearable when he plays it straight.

As Brad, he’s a wealthy middle-class consultant with a beautiful wife and home. But he’s riven with insecurity due to the mega success of his old university friends.

Interminable soul-searching begins when he flies off with his musical prodigy son who is sitting an interview at Harvard university.

The only cheer comes from Welshman Michael Sheen who plays an old buddy. Bouffant and bearded he’s a refreshing oasis of unreflective vanity and superficial charm.

The script was written and directed by Mike White, whose other writing credits include The Emoji Movie, and this story is no more insightful.

If I wanted to pay to experience the full horror of someone else’s midlife crisis, I’d take my mates to the pub.