Former special operative MacGruber is called back into action to take down his arch-enemy, Dieter Von Cunth, who’s in possession of a nuclear warhead and bent on destroying Washington, D.C.
Will Forte reprises his iconic SNL sketch as the titular character, “MacGruber,” a spin-off MacGyver. MacGruber faces off against his nemesis, Dieter Von Cunth (Val Kilmer), who is responsible for killing his wife Casey (Maya Rudolph).
MacGruber has retired after experiencing the trauma of seeing his wife die. He is only pulled back into action for revenge when he learns that Von Cunth has procured a nuclear weapon. The U.S. government enlists him to create a team to stop him.
Jorma Taccone, one-third of The Lonely Island, directed this film. I believe this was his first feature-length directorial debut, as I found that “MacGruber” does not quite hit the mark as his other feature, “Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping,” a film that I love.
“MacGruber” has all the action movie tropes thrust into it. There are explosions, violence, a personal vendetta, but the comedy was more miss than hit. There are a few funny moments, but I never laughed outright. The plot is incredibly familiar, and the comedic attempts do not differentiate the film from other generic action flicks like I think the movie wanted to.
“MacGruber” comes off as pretty pathetic, which is the point at times, but I can’t believe that this man, who has been awarded 16 Purple Hearts according to the movie, is so desperate that he begs on his knees and offers to perform, on multiple occasions, to more than one person, oral sex. “MacGruber” may be a funny character for a 3-minute sketch, but he cannot carry himself through a 90-minute film.
Kristen Wiig shows up as MacGruber’s love interest, Vicki St. Elmo, but she is not given much to do, though she is charming in the scenes she is in. Ryan Phillipe stars as the third member of MacGruber’s team as a young and eager Lieutenant looking to prove himself. And while Kilmer was fun to see as the villain, he is painfully one-note. So, though the cast is good and I like Forte as this character, it overall just left me disappointed, mainly because I did not find the film to be funny.
I did enjoy the “MacGruber” SNL sketches, but some sketches are really better off as just that, and “MacGruber” proves to be one of them. We will see if Taccone and Forte are able to revitalize the character and story again as a “MacGruber” TV show is currently in the works. I would advise skipping this film altogether and just re-watch the “MacGruber” sketches on YouTube.
Now available on Blu-ray from Mill Creek Entertainment
