The Internship
Review by Sean Lynch
The satirical news comedy group The Onion summed up The Internship best when they mockingly described the comedy as "The most anticipated movie of 2005". Sadly, it's not far from the truth.
While the concept of Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn as only "a viable comedic duo of a bygone era" is a tad harsh (in fact, they are both the funniest they've been in years here) the idea of middle age people struggling with the internet is about as comedically fresh or relevant as... a reference to MySpace... or your date taping Hey Hey It's Saturday highlights on Betamax.
Vaughn and Wilson play Billy and Nick, two hand-watch salesmen whose careers have become all but obsolete by the fact no one with an iPhone has any need for a hand-watch.
In a last ditch attempt to start anew they somehow talk their way into a coveted internship at Google. As dinosaurs amongst a slew of brilliant and youthful college students, they face an uphill battle to not only prove to "the future" they've still got it - but also to themselves.
While The Internship delivers one of the best and most effective platforms for Vince Vaughn to deliver his brand of quick fire motor-mouth laughs in years, no matter how enjoyable or charming the peaks the flick hits are, there is an elephant in the room that constantly looms in the background... and foreground.... and mid-ground.
Google.
While the promotional material suggests there was no money exchanged for Google's all encompassing presence in the film, it's almost impossible to not feel like you are watching a star studded corporate video for the technology giant. The concept of doing such a thing isn't that far fetched (check out Ricky Gervais' hour long "David Brent Training Video" commissioned by Microsoft on YouTube) and try as you might to let it slide, there are far to many "on message" slogans shoe horned into the dialogue for their presence to ever feel organic.
And don't even get me started how quickly a movie set at a tech giant will become - timeless comedy The Internship doth not make.
That said, when The Internship focusses on the strength of Vaughn and Wilson trying to bring their old school party boys ways to the "new generation", the movie is almost impossible to dislike. There is no denying it, Vince Vaughn & Owen Wilson are charming dudes that you want to hang out with.
The inclusion of our own Rose Byrne is also a real highlight too, as she channels the uptight "girl next door" vibe she mastered in the little seen Aussie flick "The Rage In Placid Lake" over a decade ago. I found myself smiling and giddy like a 15 year old with a crush every time she popped up on screen... chicks, ay!
Sadly the high points of the film simply don't outweigh the many, many superficial flaws that constantly get in the way. It's a movie that WANTS to remind us that Vince Vaughn is still a fun guy, which it achieves, but does so at the expense of taking him out of his comfort zone of "his age group" and highlighting just how out of touch he is (something we wouldn't have noticed in a different context, say, Wedding Crashers 2).
He does so much of the heavy lifting, you wish there was a stronger bunch of characters surrounding him to lighten the load, and there isn't. They are just a cringeworthy, slap dash, bunch of "those crazy iPod Generation youth" stereotypes.
As it stands, The Internship is like watching Gary Ablett for the Gold Coast Suns - a confirmation of just how phenomenal a performer Vince Vaughn can be, but a stern reminder that in the wrong environment it's a waste of talent.
3.5 out of 5
The Internship
Australian release: 13th June, 2013
Cast: Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Rose Byrne, John Goodman, Chuti Tiu, JoAnna Garcia Swisher, Dylan O'Brien, Jessica Szohr
Director: Shawn Levy
