You, Me and Dupree

You, Me and Dupree **

"You, Me and Dupree" is kind of obvious storytelling. I was able to guess every single plot twist, every single character action, and hell, even some of the lines I was able to call. There's a scene where Owen Wilson is cutting up garlic with a razor blade, kind of like that classic scene in "Goodfellas." When the image came up, I was thinking about "Goodfellas," and sure enough, Wilson's character Dupree ends up saying "This is just a little trick that I picked up watching Goodfellas." I also can't stand it when inferior movies call upon classics for laughs and ideas.

Sure, Wilson is likeable, and not annoying, which is where "You, Me, and Dupree" is mis-marketed. It is not about the annoying houseguest who won't leave. It starts out that way, and then it ventures in other territory. Wilson stars as Dupree, whose best friend Carl Peterson is about to get married. Dupree knows that once his friend gets married, there won't be as much time between them as there used to be. Hell, Carl's married friend Neil has been married for a few years, and he can only spend time at the bar on guy night for an hour-after that, his curfew is being violated. Anyway, Carl gets married to Molly, and after there honeymoon, Dupree ends up losing his job and his apartment, and he needs a few days to get up on his feet. Carl doesn't want to see his best friend sleeping in the back of a bar, on a cot nonetheless, so he takes him in for a few nights. Dupree seems to take advantage of the situation, sleeping nude on the couch, and not waking up until the middle of the afternoon. He even does things that some would consider to be even ruder, like taking a woman home from a date, and doing something in the living room involving butter. Molly wantsDupree out, and the chance to enjoy the time that she has with her new husband, but Carl doesn't seem to have the heart to get rid of him. However, after the house ends up going on fire, Carl and Molly throw him out. But Molly ends up feeling sorry for him, especially after his girl dumps him and he is sitting out in the middle of the rain at night. And now, Dupree decides that things have to change. He fixes the house, looks for jobs, and even begins to spend alot of time with Molly. Meanwhile, Carl ends up working harder, after his boss and now father-in-law ends up putting him at the head of a big project. His father in law, Mr. Thompson, is very protective of his daughter, and wants Carl to have a vasatomy, and even put a hyphen in his name so that the Thompson name can live longer. And Carl begins to see the types of things that are going on in his home, and doesn't like it. Paranoia sets in.

It has it's moments, but overall, "Dupree" isn't exactly the best comedy around, and its not Owen Wilson's best effort. It doesn't hold a candle to last year's "Wedding Crashers." I will defend it on one part. I've heard alot of people say that Wilson and Dillon are the worst pairing and have no chemistry, but I really think that it was the point. They even look alot different, and it really does make the audience wonder a little later if anything is going on between Dupree and Molly. After all, Wilson and Hudson do look a bit alot, straight down to the bright, blonde hair. It's not a buddy comedy, so they don't really need the chemistry-it's the story of a man who decides that it is time to grow up. But in the end, it was too predictable, and not very funny. It had some moments, for example Michael Douglas' strange father in law requests, but all in all, Wilson has had more fun in other works. I really have been disappointed with the summer comedies this year.