Envy (2004)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Barry Levinson

Writer (WGA):

Steve Adams (written by)

Release Date:

30 April 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Success didn't go to his head, it went to his neighbor.

Plot:

A man becomes increasingly jealous of his friend's newfound success.

Plot Keywords:

Best Friend | Frat Pack | Airplane | Employment Dismissal | Rain

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Ben Stiller	...	Tim Dingman
Jack Black	...	Nick Vanderpark
Rachel Weisz	...	Debbie Dingman
Amy Poehler	...	Natalie Vanderpark
Christopher Walken	...	J-Man
Ariel Gade	...	Lula Dingman
Sam Lerner	...	Michael Dingman
Lily Jackson	...	Nellie Vanderpark
Connor Matheus	...	Nathan Vanderpark
Hector Elias	...	Eduardo
Angee Hughes	...	Woman at Play
Manny Kleinmuntz	...	Dimitriov
Blue Deckert	...	Cal
John Gavigan	...	Les
Terry Bozeman	...	3M Worker

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for language and sexual/crude humor.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA | Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Brazil:14 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40103) | Iceland:LH | Netherlands:AL | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-7 | Germany:o.Al. | Italy:T | Singapore:PG | UK:12A

Filming Locations:

Brazil

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

The movie having been shot almost two years before it was released in theaters was in danger of being released straight to video due to poor audience response during test screenings. It was only due to The School of Rock (2003)'s huge success that it finally got a theatrical release.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Tim pulls the arrow out of J-Man's back, it is obvious that the arrow has no pointed end.

Quotes:

[as they approach the "lake" by the "cabin"]
Debbie Dingman: Under no circumstances is that a lake.
Tim Dingman: Maybe there's a tide?

Soundtrack:

I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)

When Rachel Weisz and Christopher Walken are funnier than Ben Stiller and Jack Black in a comedy, you know there has to be something wrong with the movie.

Weak, underdeveloped, and very painful to watch attempt at comedy by Barry Levinson that is a real eyesore in many, many ways. First, it has a plot that only a 30 minute sitcom could hold and second, it makes Ben Stiller and Jack Black look like rank amateurs that just started out from stand up comedy. It makes them both look bad in ways that can't really be defined. Nether of the actors is able to make this bad script work, and they fail miserably while trying. The direction is also pretty bad, and it makes Barry Levinson look like a inspiring film student with no talent, and judging by the last few films that he has made, he should stop before they kick him out of Hollywood all together. This movie is more his fault than the actors involved and you can see that by how bad certain scenes were staged and the way the movie feels in certain places. The film does have its funny moments with Christopher Walken doing his quaky best to keep the audience interested in what is going on, and Rachel Weisz, who gives a funny performance with a very underwritten character. Too bad nether of them are able to get pass the bad direction and lousy script that makes this film so bad in the first place.

Avoid this film like the plague.