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THE HOUSE — Review by Susan Granger

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A strong contender for the Worst Picture of the Year, this new Will Ferrell/Amy Poehler comedy fails on almost every level. Continue reading…

In suburban Fox Meadow, Scott (Farrell) and Kate (Poehler) Johansen are justifiably proud of their accomplished daughter Alex (Ryan Simpkins), who just got into Bucknell, the college of her choice, earning a full, town-funded scholarship.

Problem is: sneaky Bob (Nick Kroll), the corrupt Councilman, decides to divert the designated funds to build an elaborate municipal swimming pool, leaving no money for Alex. Since neither Scott nor Kate ever thought about saving for their daughter’s education, they’re panicked.

But their best friend Frank (Jason Mantzoukas), whose estranged wife (Michaela Watkins) dumped him because of his gambling addiction, comes up with what they think is a brilliant idea: Why not open an illegal, secret casino in Frank’s spacious, almost-empty house?

Frank assures them that over the summer, they can make at least a half-million dollars. The Johansen’s split will be more than enough money for Kate’s tuition.

Where do they get the working capital to finance this elaborate fully-staffed casino, complete with a blackjack table, craps tables, a roulette wheel, surveillance cameras, dealers and bartenders?

And why does bumbling Officer Chandler (Rob Huebel) represent the only law-enforcement around?

Working from an absurdly implausible script he wrote with Brendan O’Brien, Andrew Jay Cohen (“Neighbors”) makes an inauspicious directing debut.

In this stale, sophomoric farce, the charmless Johansens behave like middle-aged dorks – with Kate re-experiencing her love of weed and Scott inadvertently getting a macho ‘fix’ by becoming an enforcer known as The Butcher. That leads to a cameo by Jeremy Renner as a ruthless mobster.

The depravity gets worse when two foul-mouthed females (Lennon Parham, Andrea Savage) square off in a “Fight Club” brawl while townspeople bet on the outcome.

On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “The House” is an atrociously tedious 2. What a terrible waste of time and talent!

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Susan Granger

Susan Granger is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at R.K.O., M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures; her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M. As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O'Brien and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, Phi Beta Kappa, with highest honors in journalism. During her adult life, Susan has been on radio and television as an anchorwoman and movie/drama critic. Her newspaper reviews have been syndicated around the world, and she has appeared on American Movie Classics cable television. In addition, her celebrity interviews and articles have been published in REDBOOK, PLAYBOY, FAMILY CIRCLE, COSMOPOLITAN, WORKING WOMAN and THE NEW YORK TIMES, as well as in PARIS MATCH, ELLE, HELLO, CARIBBEAN WORLD, ISLAND LIFE, MACO DESTINATIONS, NEWS LIMITED NEWSPAPERS (Australia), UK DAILY MAIL, UK SUNDAY MIRROR, DS (France), LA REPUBBLICA (Italy), BUNTE (Germany), VIP TRAVELLER (Krisworld) and many other international publications through SSG Syndicate. Susan also lectures on the "Magic and Mythology of Hollywood" and "Don't Take It Personally: Conquering Criticism and other Survival Skills," originally published on tape by Dove Audio.