Maybe I was expecting too much. The film seemed to be perfect on paper. You have two hot stars right now (Robert Downey, Jr. and Zach Galifiankis) in a road trip comedy. It's from the same director of The Hangover, which is the highest grossing R-rated comedy of all time. It sounds good on paper, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Let me explain.
Due Date is about a high-strung father-to-be (Robert Downey Jr.) is forced to hitch a ride with a college slacker (Zach Galifiankis) on a road trip in order to make it to his child's birth on time. From there hilarity ensures and becomes a crazy road trip movie.
When I first saw the trailer I immediately thought of Plains, Trains, and Automobiles. This classic 1987 movie starred Steve Martin and John Candy basically in the same predicament. Of course there are some differences like Steve Martin trying to get home for Thanksgiving and that it takes place in the holiday season.
The difference between that movie and Due Date is that Plains, Trains, and Automobiles actually had heart and character development. In Due Date you sacrifice those elements from over-the-top humor. This over-the-top humor works for The Hangover and it only works half the time for this film. The main reason is that The Hangover has a much more clever script. It's juvenile, but written well. It's like the comedic version of Memento. Due Date's script is worse and film goes all over the place, especially in the latter part of the film.
The chemistry between the two actors is decent, but it always feel a little uneasy too. Plus the film always felt a little too mean spirited to me and went on the border of dark comedy. It's weird since I usually love dark comedy. The chemistry between Steve Martin and John Candy always felt more earnest and real. They actually bonded at the end. At the end of Due Date I felt like the two leads were still annoyed of each other.
It seems like I'm dogging this film, but I'm not. It had some very funny moments, but they happened too sporadically. It will entertain the first time, but it won't have as much replay value. I would rent Plains, Trains, and Automobiles instead if you want to see a good road trip movie.
Due Date - 3/5
Plains, Trains, and Automobiles - 4.5/5
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