Somebody Up There Likes Me (2013)
Starring Nick Offerman, Keith Poulson, Jess Wexler, Stephanie Hunt, and Megan Mullally
Directed by Bob Byington
***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***
Somebody Up There Likes Me is a weird one. There is an offbeat deadpan aesthetic to this that will either win you over or bore you to pieces from the get go. I was willing to accept that comedic tone, but the dry humor wore thin about halfway through and it turned into an almost interminable affair. Still, I found the first 35 minutes of this rather short film quite humorous as we meet Max (Keith Poulson) who, in one of the film's opening scenes, walks in on his estranged wife sleeping with another man. He confides in his good friend Sal (Nick Offerman) who tells him he's better off without a woman considering the malaise he's felt ever since he got married several years ago. At this point, the film then begins to time travel into the future in roughly five-year increments, following the lives of Max and Sal and their relationships with women, with each other, and with their business.
Even with the time jumping, the characters never age and this clever and unique method of telling a story is somewhat captivating...at least initially. However, as time progresses (in both the story and the film itself), the absurd and somewhat surreal style along with its aloof tone wears thin. I always find myself enjoying Nick Offerman's dry humor and that's certainly the case here. Keith Poulson is also engaging enough as a lead despite the fact that he's purposefully one-notish, but its his character's inherent nonchalance and the film's same "attitude" that disappoints after time.
The RyMickey Rating: C-
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