Order Up!
As easy as I make this look, reviewing a film like Waiting can be hard work. The film is a comedy, and it hits all the right marks. Rob McKittrick, the director, was obviously influenced by Kevin Smith, Clerks in particular (the film actually plays like Clerks meets Office Space). You’ll laugh in all the right places. This is the kind of movie you would see late at night, after a few beers. I’m not sure what to say beyond that.
Waiting, as McKittrick himself has said, owes a heavy debt to Clerks. One almost expects Jay and Silent Bob to walk in and order a Double Shenaniganz Burger and Kurly Fries, nooch. As it is, McKittrick has his own duo of loveable idiots, two busboys (Andy Milonakis and Max Kasch). The two fashion themselves as two wigger gangstas, and they spend much of their time stoned in the refrigerator. (Stay tuned during the closing credits for a rap number these two perform, in character, one of the funniest moments in the film.)
Ryan Reynolds is Monty, a waiter who has probably been at it too long. Reynolds does his Van Wilder shtick (as opposed to what, I’m not really sure), and he does it well. As actors go, Reynolds does not have the most range, but when it comes to this kind of comedy, there are few better. That said, it’s a shame he didn’t have better material. There are some great comedic moments in this movie, but much of Reynolds’ jokes revolve around his pursuit of underage girls. Now, I don’t mind jokes about sex with underage girls… as long as they’re funny. This role seems to have been written for Reynolds, he is that good a fit, so it’s a shame he does not get more of the film’s better jokes.
While Monty plans his next statutory move, Dean (Justin Long, Jeepers Creepers, Dodgeball) struggles with which fork to take in the road of life. The manager of Shenaniganz, Dan (David Koechner, Anchorman, The 40 Year Old Virgin) pushes him to take an assistant manager position at another location, but Dean knows that a life of service with a smile is not for him. He wants to finish college and make something of himself. His frustration comes out on some of the diners, with embarrassing results.
Waiting is populated by an amazing cast. Milonakis is in the right role, and seems to have had free reign to do whatever he wanted. Dane Cook is, well, a cook, Floyd, who relishes any opportunity to take revenge one a customer by adding a little something extra to the day’s special. Cook also has some good lines. Anna Ferris is one of the waitresses, a smaller role, but her banter with Reynolds is memorable. Patrick Benedict is the hopeless Calvin, a waiter who is hilariously whipped. Chi McBride is Bishop, a dishwasher-slash-psychoanalyst, the Freud of pots and pans. He hangs out, smokes, and gives sage life advice to anyone who wants it. And, of course, the incomparable Luis Guzman as Raddimus, another cook, one of the biggest pervs in the restaurant, and guru of The Game.
Ah yes, The Game. No accounting of Waiting would be complete without it, yet to say too much here would be to spoil the fun. It is the kind of thing that could only come out of an environment where a bunch of guys work side by side, but The Game also provides some of the biggest laughs in the film.
There are a lot of laughs. Waiting is far from groundbreaking; it is even a little derivative at times, but it never ceases to be funny, which is really all we can ask.
Film Rating: *** (out of 5)
