Plot: What’s it about?
I’ve never really quite been able to figure out Vince Vaughn. I, like the rest of the world, was introduced to the actor in 1996’s Swingers – a movie which put him on the map. Yes, if you look closely, you’ll see that he had a small part in 1993’s Rudy (he was underachieving quarterback, Jamie O’Hara), but he was so money in his first leading role! His next role was that of Nick Van Owen in The Lost World and he had a few minor roles in the years after. It really wasn’t until 2003’s Old School that Vaughn really found his niche. That of the middle-aged frat boy. Old School paved the way for a new style of film for Vaughn which led to 2004’s Dodgeball, 2005’s Wedding Crashers and so forth. Never let it be said that you’re too old to act like a fool and get paid for it. Vaughn teamed with Writer/Director Ken Scott for the oddly sentimental Delivery Man in 2013 and now the two have teamed up once again – this time taking aim at the corporate world. Will lightning strike twice?
Vaughn plays Dan Trunkman who, in a Jerry McGuire-ish fit, has an argument with is boss (Sienna Miller) and quits his job over a 5% cut in pay. He vows to form his own company, one that will put his current/previous employer out of business. No one follows. However he meets Tim (Tom Wilkinson) in a the parking lot, an employee who’s just been let go due to his age, and Mike Pancake (Dave Franco), someone who was interviewing for a job. The three form a company and a year later…they’re still looking for that first big account. As it so happens, a potential break comes up which brings the trio to Germany. Dan is after the “handshake” which, I guess, is as good as a signed contract in his world. Of course there are obstacles and Dan runs into Chuck (Miller) who is after the same deal. This leads to the obvious pratfalls when Tim tells Dan that the company is out of money, the three go to a nightclub and get drunk, Dan stays as part of a visual art exhibition that doubles as a hotel room, etc. There’s also a subplot with Dan’s kids, one a bully and the other a bullier that he’s supposed to fix while overseas. Now think real hard…do you think Dan and company will land the big deal or will they forever be trapped in corporate limbo?
Unfinished Business is just a mess. It’s all over the map with a disjointed plot and characters that we not only don’t get, but we could care less about. Granted, the cast is good, but actors can only do so much with characters that are paper thin. Tom Wilkinson, Dave Franco (probably the one who does the most with his role), Vaughn, Sienna Miller, James Mardsen and Nick Frost are all accomplished performers but…a crucial element is missing. What’s even more perplexing is that things seem to happen for no reason whatsoever. Why did Dan run a marathon in his suit? Why did we see so much male nudity? Why were we greeted with the same sexual “wheelbarrow” joke repeatedly that wasn’t even funny the first time? Don’t get me wrong, there were some laugh out loud moments, but those can’t really save this from my “I can’t believe I watched the whole thing” movie pile.
Video: How’s it look?
Presented in a 2.40:1 AVC HD image, Unfinished Business, does certainly look the part. It’s a new to Blu-ray film that sports everything we’d associate with a film of this age. Colors are bright and bold, though judging by the bags under Vaughn’s eyes, he’s not getting any younger. Detail is excellent, which might be a good thing when looking at certain parts of the male anatomy. I did notice a fair amount of grain in the early part of the film. I’m not sure if a different stock was used, but it did make an impression. Still, for all intents and purposes, this is an above-average looking disc.
Audio: How’s it sound?
Save for a select few scenes, this is mainly a dialogue-driven comedy. Yes, we’ve got the obligatory night club sequence which has the bass thumping and the surrounds kicking in. There’s a car crash as well that sounds halfway decent, but by and large if you’ve seen one Vince Vaughn film, you’ll know that he talks a mile a minute. Vocals are faithfully reproduced and the audio as a whole sounds better than most. Granted this isn’t something you’d expect to shake the room and it doesn’t. Essentially you get what you expect here.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Deleted and Alternate Scenes – Sixteen total and none really offer any more to the story (which is why they weren’t included in the final cut) and only a few got a mild chuckle out of me.
- Show Me Your Business: Making Unfinished Business – “The script was so smart!” Uh, no Vince – it wasn’t. This your typical 5 minute EPK with some interviews with the cast and crew as well as a few behind the scenes bits of footage.
- Stills Gallery – Probably the most clever thing that was associated with the film came in the form of this stills gallery. If you’ve ever seen corporate stock photos (go to iStockphoto.com and enter in “Corporate Team” or something similar) these pretty much hit the nail on the head. It’s a gallery of about 10 photos with Vaughn, Wilkinson and Franco as part of the photo set. There are no stills from the film itself, just these – but admittedly they were a bit clever.
- Theatrical Trailer
- Sneak Peeks – Spy, Kingsman: The Secret Service, X-Men: Days of Future Past (Rogue Cut) and She’s Funny That Way are shown as well as an intro. on Discovering Digital HD
The Bottom Line
Admittedly there were a few funny scenes in the film. I’ll give the film that. But as a whole, it was so predictable and so disjointed that I really find it amazing that movies like this are made these days. The Blu-ray offers up some solid audio and video, though the supplements are lacking both style and substance. This is a tough one to recommend unless, for some reason, you absolutely loved the movie.
