The premise of a man being abducted, strapped to a bomb, and then blackmailed into robbing a bank for $100,000 sounds more like a thriller than it does a comedy, and by all rational accounts that’s usually how such a situation would be played out. 30 Minutes or Less proves it doesn’t have to go in that direction though, and with a few bumps, successfully transitions it into a comedy about witless criminals, inheritance schemes, friendship, and action flick satire with moments of hilarity. It owes a lot to Jesse Eisenberg’s ability to play the bizarre off as comical and some well-planned running gags, but all in all, 30 Minutes or Less doesn’t fail outright as a black comedy. Sadly, Eisenberg can’t completely undo the damage wrought by a Danny McBride, Nick Swardson, and Aziz Ansari unable to let go of their individual shticks long enough to play actual characters in the story, and so the truly funny bits feel ages apart in a film that desperately needs them coming at a rapid-fire pace.
Dwayne (McBride) and Travis (Swardson) haven’t done much with their lives, but they’re pretty sure that’s not a problem as their millionaire father (Fred Ward) will be kicking the bucket rather soon. Not naturally, of course, because they’ve hired a killer from Detroit (Michael Pena) to do the dirty deed in exchange for $100,000. Of course, there’s a hitch: they don’t have $100,000, but what they do have are Dwayne’s tactical brilliance and Travis’s bomb-making skills. They devise a plan to force a stranger to rob a bank by strapping a bomb to his chest, and then select Nick (Eisenberg), a pizza boy all but devoid of ambition, as their hapless pawn. With a bomb as his newfound coat, Nick enlists his best friend Chet (Ansari) to help rob the bank and thus save his life, only to discover that no part of that plan is going to go as smoothly as they or the dimwitted criminals expect. Madcap antics ensue.
Eisenberg has fallen into a rut playing the straight man caught in the ridiculous machinations of clowns, chaos, and plain old bad luck. He’s entirely believable as a man out of his depth that’s somewhat skeptical that what he’s experiencing could actually happen, and that’s what makes him such a sympathetic character and the perfect tool to dispel the audience’s cynicism. He can’t believe what’s happening and neither can the audience, so we find a kindred spirit and go willingly along for the ride. That formula hits a bit of a snag though when he’s paired with Ansari who’s known for playing everything a bit over the top. He’s more restrained here, and I think this qualifies as the closest he’s ever come to actually acting, but he’s still playing it up as if he were the comedian Aziz and not the down to earth school teacher Chet. Of the film’s weak links he’s not the worst, because at least when he reverts back to being himself the comedy still works, and that’s not the case with Danny McBride.
Casting McBride in a scripted, plot-driven comedy is a dangerous game, as his comedy style is very specific and requires an audience attuned to his wavelength. Sometimes his blustery egotism works perfectly with his controlling, over-confident would-be criminal, but for most of the film he just can’t rein it in and every scene he’s in is the Danny McBride show. The script has enough comedy written in, but McBride overpowers it and makes it his own, which ultimately makes it less accessible to the majority of audiences who haven’t adapted to his brand of comedy through his other films and the niche television favorite Eastbound & Down. He stretched the character to fit him and not vice versa, and consequently half of the film suffers for it. It’s as much McBride’s fault as it is Director Ruben Flesicher’s, and in that respect it’s puzzling to think that Fleischer was able to tone down Ansari but didn’t make any effort to do the same with McBride. On the other hand, Swardson steps up his typical game and gives the audience exactly what’s needed to counteract McBride’s over-the-top choices. Nick Swardson’s delivery has been hit-or-miss in many past efforts, but he does well as the soft spoken partner to Dwayne and he has the second best performance in the film after Eisenberg.
The acting varies wildly across the board and comedy doesn’t always pay off when it should, but there are just enough gut busting laughs (like the robbery scene) to make it worthwhile for the casual comedy lover. If you’re a huge Danny McBride fan, 30 Minutes or Less might end up having more kick for you than it does others, but for everyone else he pretty much deflates the goodwill that Swardson and Eisenberg give it. Otherwise, 30 Minutes or Less qualifies as a mediocre comedy that could have been so much more.
"30 Minutes or Less" opens August 12, 2011 and is rated R. Comedy, Crime. Directed by Ruben Fleischer. Written by Michael Diliberti. Starring Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride, Jesse Eisenberg, Nick Swardson.
