‘Drillbit Taylor’ lackluster despite being produced and written by genre leaders
Posted on March 27, 2008
Have you ever had a bully pick on you? Ever had your underwear pulled over your head? Ever been stuffed into a locker that was half your size?
If you answered “yes” to all three of these questions you don’t have to worry anymore because your savior has arrived. Drillbit Taylor is reporting for duty with a few laughs along the way.
Three teenage boys are dreading their first day of high school. When they step off the yellow bus for the first time their fears come to life.
The big, bad bully, who simply goes by “Filkins,” sets his sights on the “fresh meat” and gives them a first day from hell.
Tired of the constant bullying, the three boys set out to hire a bodyguard to protect them from the evil Filkins. Realizing they are short on funds, they hire the cheapest and the worst qualified candidate for the job. Enter Drillbit Taylor.
Bob “Drillbit” Taylor, a homeless man, takes the kids’ offer. Although initially he joins the gang just for the money, eventually, just like in all movies, he comes to really care for the kids and will do anything to take out Filkins.
The driving force of this movie is, of course, the comedic ability of Owen Wilson (“Wedding Crashers,” “You Me & Dupree,”), but the three young new faces also bring some humor to the mix. Wade (played by Nate Hartley), the tall lanky one, brings a shy and nervous type of humor, while Ryan aka T-Dawg (played by Troy Gentile), the chubby outgoing one, brings laughs with his random rap outbursts and foul language. The other young boy, Emmit (played by David Dorfman, “The Ring”), doesn’t bring as much to the table as the other two, but he can do a pretty flamboyant dance that you can’t help but laugh out loud at.
If the style of humor seems rather familiar to you it’s because this movie is just another entry into the Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow (“40-Year-Old-Virgin,” “Knocked Up,” “Superbad”) collection.
This time Seth Rogan, the script’s co-writer, stayed behind the scenes, while Judd Apatow produced the film. Leslie Mann, (“Knocked Up”) Judd Apatow’s wife, stars as the leading female role.
The most shocking aspect of the movie is that the story came from the famous Hollywood director/writer John Hughes. Yes, the same John Hughes of such teen classics as “Pretty in Pink,” “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” and “The Breakfast Club.” No one has heard much from him in a while, but it seems he’s still staying active in the teen-comedy genre.
Because this movie is made by a unique group of comedians, it has a standard that it has to meet or exceed. With “40-Year-Old-Virgin” being what it was – an instant classic – and “Superbad” and “Knocked Up” also doing well, it’s hard to keep delivering the same amount of quality.
“Drillbit Taylor” is a good movie, but it doesn’t hold up to the others. It’s great for a boring Saturday afternoon, but not the best movie to add to your Judd Apatow/John Hughes collection.
