Review: The Internship

Review: The Internship

Director: Shawn Levy

Cast: Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson, Rose Byrne, John Goodman

Running time: 119 Minutes 

 From the guys who brought you Wedding Crashers comes a movie that's nowhere near as good as Wedding Crashers!

A shame really, because while The Internship's narrative plays out like a bland, often bleak two hour long advertisement for Google, the chemistry between its two leads is still remarkably entertaining. Separately the two are unbearable (with the exception of Owen Wilson's incredible performance in Midnight In Paris), but together they make for a nicely nostalgic comical team.

Unfortunately the pair are playing out a ridiculously unrealistic script (do they really play Quidditch at Google Headquarters? Really?), yet at the same time it's heavily predictable with a cast of stereotypical side characters and boring jokes.

The first few moments offer a slightly more realistic take on the modern world, as Wilson and Vaughn play Nick and Billy, two salesmen whose careers have a hit a dead end. With their watch-selling business closing up shop, they find themselves struggling to adapt to a new way of job hunting. For some unfathomable reason, Billy randomly applies for an internship at Google - a chance for the two to gain a qualification which may lead to a job. 

So off they trot to Google Headquarters, and the camera bursts at the seams with the colours of the company's logo in almost every shot. Perhaps The Internship was actually some sort of brainwashing scheme by Google's CEO's themselves, as the focus on the characters seems to take a back seat to the internet giant itself.

Still, Vaughn and Wilson are enjoyable enough and there's even a decent cameo from Will Ferrell to lighten up the proceedings along with Rose Byrne of Bridesmaids fame as Wilson's love interest. Despite establishing herself as a great actress, her talent is wasted here in a predictable and clichéd supporting role. 

When the story isn't focusing on how incredible Google is and how we should all worship the company who made the internet "so accessible", there are a few amusing moments. If you can't chuckle at grown men playing Quidditch while chasing some guy covered in golden face paint ("Catch the the golden bitch!") then when can you, really?

Well, probably at funnier movies. That being said The Internship is a decent, throwaway alternative to those Social Network-esque origin stories of the world's biggest companies, and if you keep your expectations low then it could tickle your funny bone now and again.

For example, the script does grab some decent fish out of water gags as Vaughn and Wilson attempt to integrate themselves within the teams of young computer geniuses ("When you say 'on the line' you mean...online?") and despite its extensive running time, director Shawn Levy keeps the pacing brisk and fun. There's even an energetic and occasionally funny visit to a strip joint, and an amusing running gag featuring a Korean boy removing his eyebrows one hair at a time consistently raises a few giggles.

That being said, a few laughs do not a comedy make and The Internship feels more like a vague idea for a movie rather than a fully realised feature. It will also be outdated incredibly quickly (such is the pace of modern technology), and it's obvious that Vaughn, who also wrote the script, has had this idea mulling around for a while before clicking "I'm Feeling Lucky" in his head. 

The end result is unfortunately below par and had it been in less generic and more imaginative hands, The Internship's decent ideas could have made for one of the funniest movies of the year.

Summary

The Internship is the kind of film you shrug your shoulders at and say "Well, I suppose there's nothing else on." It's not bad for a few laughs here and there and the chemistry between its two leads is still as believable as ever, but for all its clichéd charm and feel-good messages, there's far too much focus on the "amazing" world that is Google to be truly comfortable. Error Code 404: Originality Not Found.

5/10 - Mediocre

See it if you liked: Dodgeball (2004), The Social Network (2010), The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)