Stuber

photo courtesy of variety.com

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

     Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista join forces in Stuber, an action comedy directed by Michael Dowse. Kumail plays Stu, an awkward Uber driver who gets pushed around by everybody in his life. That all changes when he meets Vic (Bautista), a tough detective determined to catch the drug trafficker Teijo (Iko Uwais), who killed his partner. After he’s left nearly blind by an eye surgery, Vic relies on Stu—and his trusty Uber ride—to help him bring Teijo to justice.

     Stuber is funny enough to merit a watch, but only if you don’t come into it with particularly high standards. It’s the kind of movie that feels like a solid once-in-a-while, lazy afternoon streaming pick, when you don’t have to give it your full attention. If you’re desperate for something in theaters this weekend, you can probably do better.

photo courtesy of ew.com

     The movie packs in plenty of laughs, most of which derive from Nanjiani’s wonderful, quirky comedic delivery. The writing isn’t totally consistent—you can tell the difference between screenplay jokes and Kumail’s improv—and even when jokes work, they’re never exactly high-brow. But Stuber is funny enough, especially in the first half, to keep the audience happy.

     Things really fall apart when you start thinking about story. Stuber’s screenplay comes chock full of clichés and makes absolutely no sense if you dwell on any of it for more than a split second. Plus, it’s hard to shake the idea that the entire thing essentially functions as an expensive Uber product placement. To add insult to injury, Stuber criminally underuses both Uwais (known for martial art stunts in movies like The Raid) and Karen Gillian, who has way too much comedy talent to get so little screen time. Story isn’t always crucial in an action-comedy, but when the comedy is a little disappointing to begin with, a story like this falls totally flat.

Stuber is rated R for violence and language throughout, some sexual references and brief graphic nudity.

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