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Drillbit Taylor

Awkward, sort of funny and clearly in need of help--just like a 14-year-old

By Matt Pais

Metromix
March 20, 2008

Critic's Rating:

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Homeless army vet Drillbit Taylor (Owen Wilson) needs cash to leave California for Canada, so he cons three geeky high-school freshmen (a fat kid, a skinny kid and a short kid) into hiring him as their bodyguard. His plan to rip 'em off and hightail it up north changes when he takes a liking to the kids—and one of their teachers (Leslie Mann).

Big question: Can co-writer Seth Rogen and producer Judd Apatow translate the R-rated laughs of "Superbad" to a PG-13 audience?

Skip it: It's sometimes funny, but never for two jokes in a row and never enough that the premise doesn't feel like a "Freaks and Geeks" episode simplified for wider audiences. While showing the importance of standing up for your friends, "Drillbit Taylor" bogs down in problems that are innocent but plentiful, the largest of which is that the humor, the bullies and the gawky heroes all just sit flatly on the screen rather than exploding off of it.

Catch it: For an amusing schoolyard rap battle and Drillbit's friend Don's (Danny McBride) pro-literacy explanation of why it's OK to take from kids: "Steal their TV; Maybe they'll read a book?"

Bottom line: Drillbit is just an excuse to let Wilson be himself, which comes with a casual surfer-boy charm but nothing more. Part of the greatness of "Superbad" was its sincere interest in the hilarious and relatable textures of teenage agony, and one of many reasons "Drillbit Taylor" lacks legitimate heart and pee-your-pants laughs is that it's more intent on capturing safe, stereotypical movie character lives than real ones.

Bonus: Drillbit learns that if you can't put a severed finger on ice, a margarita will do. Keep this in mind during your next knife fight, or just the next time you go out for burritos.

Video: Watch the review of 'Drillbit Taylor'

What do you think of 'Drillbit Taylor'? Email me: mpais@tribune.com