Bad Words

I'm pleased to report that I loved this movie, even though I expected to hate it. Based on the previews, I expected that this movie would be dull and creepy with formulaic, humorless, jokes. However, it was interesting, funny, and not that creepy. Jason Bateman pulled off the near impossible task of being a jerk when dealing with small children while keeping the tone funny, rather than offensive. Even the inherently creepy parts were more funny than creepy. Jason Bateman's inappropriate interactions with most of the child actors were inappropriate in juvenile ways, and the juvenile humor worked! Even the inappropriate interactions with co-star Rohan Chand were sufficiently funny that the creepiness didn't hurt the movie. Bad Words proves the comedic rule that: Mean or offensive jokes are acceptable if sufficiently funny.

source: Bad Words

Other reviewers here have slated the film due to the language which I agree was a little harsh considering the age of the actors but the film would just not have worked without it. The characters were developed brilliantly all the way through and production perfect. Saying much more would be leaning towards spoilers which are as they suggest. I will say it is funny, heart-warming and generally enjoyable. If I had one criticism it would only be that it was a tiny bit predictable but by the end of the movie I just didn't care. Would recommend this movie to all except those unduly sensitive to language.

"What was your favorite word?" Jason Bateman is a funny guy although his films are usually hit or miss with me. Bad Words was a miss. I just couldn't get into the premise of this film considering Bateman plays a 40 year old guy competing in the largest spelling bee competition in the USA against a bunch of young and intelligent kids. Sometimes these sort of ridiculous premises work extremely well in comedies, but this film was just too mean spirited and offensive for my taste. I didn't find any of the jokes funny and the relationships Bateman's character has with the people around him never felt believable. There is some mystery revolving around the main character's intention for entering this contest, but once it was revealed I didn't think it added anything to the movie. I will give some credit to Jason Bateman (who also directed this film) for casting himself against type considering he usually plays the nice guy and here he plays a hateful and racist character. I just didn't find any situation funny in Bad Words and I don't think we can call a film hilarious only for pushing the limits on swearing and calling kids and their parents names. Perhaps it was just not my type of comedy, but it never worked for me and I was disappointed with Bateman's directorial feature debut. Kathryn Hahn plays the journalist who is supporting Bateman's character in the spelling bee competition. She knows the story will sell and since Bateman found a loophole in the competition needing a national journalist to back him up she willingly decides to help. The relationship between both characters is probably the weakest link in the film and I never found any of their interactions funny. Rohan Chand plays one of the competitors in the spelling bee who befriends Guy (Jason Bateman). At first Guy wants nothing to do with him, but pretty soon a relationship develops which turns out to be the heart and soul of this film. Chand plays a sympathetic character but I really wasn't too comfortable with his performance. Not even reliable actors like Allison Janney and Ben Falcone are given any opportunities to shine here. Perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for a comedy, but I don't remember laughing at any particular scene here. I did feel a bit uncomfortable with the strange relationships between each character and I simply found Bateman's Guy too hateful to want to spend more time watching him on screen.

Jason Bateman is Guy Trilby, who is 40 year old man who seeks to capture a lost moment of his youth to win the spelling bee. However, there is one drawback, his is a 40 something competing against young students. Guy qualifies under some technicalities and makes for an art of war approach to winning the spelling bee. Some hilarious moments and great one-liners as Guy befriends his number one competitor the young 10 year old Chaitanya. This movie will make you root for the underdog and realize the magic of having spell check on your word processing program. They say you can never go back, but this movie proves that sometimes you might just be able to.

Jason Batemen tried, he really did. And he almost got to second base with this...I believe it's his directorial debut...at least feature-wise. But the loopy plot never really makes sense and neither do any of Guy Trilbey's relationships. Why would a smart kid like Chaitanya want to REALLY be Guy's friend? Why is the reporter Jenny (played by the promising Kathryn Hahn) helping out this hopeless nut case in the first place? Was I drunk and missed something? Maybe it was that bathroom break. Bad Words looks like a movie...sounds like one. But in the end it's sort of a letdown. I'm not mad that my hour and a half was 'wasted'...but I expected more. Especially from Bateman. I'll give him another chance.

From the beginning of the film, when the premise is laid out - 40 year old angry, vicious man who cares nothing for hurting others including innocent children - I kept wondering: what will be the punchline, i.e., what will be the justification for this guy's atrocious behavior? OK, well, we must wait for almost the entire movie until we find out: it was all about revenge against the man who was the head of the prestigious spelling bee, and, oh, BTW, just happens to be his absentee father. So we're supposed to feel that it was OK that this character, played by Jason Bateman (also written and directed by) was a nasty, self-absorbed, rude, crude, mean, etc. etc. person, in order to give pay back to the long-lost father. Oh, yeah, also are we supposed to feel he's been redeemed because in the end he acts "nice" to the young boy he's "befriended"? This is one of the worst examples I've seen of this kind of thinking, i.e., because one was abused/suffered/traumatized etc. it's a rationale for their ongoing irresponsible behavior. Give me a break...

Out of the gate, Jason Bateman's Guy Trilby cracks up the audience with his offensive humor and irreverent attitude toward everyone and everything around him (even his sole ally, reporter Jenny Widgeon (Kathryn Hahn), who capably plays a role likely too small by intention, allowing Trilby freedom to run amok). It isn't until much later that we learn his motivations, but they are largely irrelevant and contribute little to the value of this film. Bateman has proved before that his career renaissance, so to speak, is not strictly married to the "nice guy" we met in Arrested Development and revisited in Horrible Bosses; he has shown us in a variety of roles that he can play a bona fide jerk (see for examples his pleasantly unexpected appearance and performance in State of Play). But here, he takes this over the top. His rhetoric is rarely, if ever, appropriate to the given situation. Nearly every other character is adversarial, giving Trilby plenty of opportunity to offend and delight us. Even Trilby's sole attempt at magnanimity comes only when he feels he has accomplished his vindictive end, and in itself turns into a raucous, belligerent spectacle as he attempts to throw the spelling bee and allow his tenuous junior friend to win, while the boy wants the honor on his own well-earned merits. Despite his crass approach to everyone and everything around him, Bateman's Trilby is someone you can't help but like; this is certainly in no small part due to Bateman's overall likability as a person and an actor. You don't root for him, per se, but you certainly enjoy him. He was perfectly cast. Past roles hinted at this side of his acting chops, but here he takes you by complete surprise. See this film; you'll enjoy that surprise and the ride - it is non-stop and well worth the price of a movie ticket. Fast-paced, witty, offensive. If you enjoyed Seth MacFarlane's Ted, you'll love Bad Words.

I feel compelled to review this because I believe some took this movie too personally, and thus rated it poorly. If you are easily offended, you might be shocked or uncomfortable on several occasions. If you understand this is an artistic work of fiction, or if you like dark, sinister comedy, you can laugh at how this movie relentlessly pummels you with awkward moments. My advice is to cast away your moral standings in reality, and try see this movie from another perspective. To be vague, it turns out there's a method to the madness towards the end. And for me, the underlying message made it worthwhile. Jason Bateman was incredibly convincing in this role!

I saw this at TIFF and I laughed and laughed and laughed. In fact, I've been laughing since September so I thought I better write this review. I keep thinking about how funny this is. This is a very funny movie. Jason Bateman couldn't have been funnier. My face is still hurting, thinking of watching him. Everybody else in the movie was funny too, but Bateman stole the show. We're talking one funny guy. If you feel like laughing, peeing and crying, go see this movie. It is such a funny movie. Your tummy will probably hurt as well as your face. Now I know what side-splitting means. This is a very funny movie. Very, very funny. This is a very funny movie. I mean very funny.