From screenplay writer Steve Conrad ~ who has brought us such enjoyable films as THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY and THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS ~ comes a film, slightly based on the BUSINESS WORLD, slightly based on what obscene things might happen on a BUSINESS TRIP ~ with a few real-life scenarios thrown in too for good measure ~ go figure…as we venture into some UNFINISHED BUSINESS.
Having to face the realities of what some of us might call “Business as usual”, Dan Trunkman (Vince Vaughn) isn’t going to stand by and take another pay cut after working his “you know what off” day, after day, after day.
Deciding his best move is to start his own business, Dan enlists the help of two fellow employees~ well sort of ~ Timothy McWinters (Tom Wilkinson) and Mike Pancake (Dave Franco) to follow him into the great unknown.
After toiling away trying to make their new company work, they have come to a crossroads ~ as they head off from St. Louis to Europe to secure their biggest business deal, which seems to be only a hand shake away.
But, when they arrive to find that Dan’s arch rival Chuck Portnoy (Sienna Miller), is also in Europe trying to snag “their deal” – things may just get a little OUT OF CONTROL, and in so many ways, there may be no turning back…
I give UNFINISHED BUSINESS a B-: Well for all of you out there wondering… let me share that you will be pleasantly surprised that all of the funny parts in this film ARE NOT included in the trailer, which is always refreshing. And please tell me if you agree, that the first 5 minutes of this film seemed so much like JERRY MCGUIRE, that for a split second, I thought Tom Cruise might have grown!!! Yet, and maybe most importantly for many of you too, parts of this film are filled with so much raunch and bawdiness that it did manage to catch me off guard a few times, as I was not expecting to see things just “hanging out” here, there and everywhere, which seemed to happen throughout almost the entire film. Intrigued? So was I, at the beginning, as I was so hoping that all of the mayhem that was ensuing on screen would become Vaughn’s triumphant return to those films which I love ~ DODGE BALL, WEDDING CRASHERS, even THE DILEMMA or THE BREAKUP, which I both incredibly enjoyed viewing too…but sadly…it was just more of what we have grown accustomed to seeing him do over and over for the last few years…NOTHING NEW HERE! Don’t get me wrong, UNFINSIHED BUSINESS does have it’s funny parts, and it’s crude parts, and it’s real-life dramatic parts too ~ Vaughn playing a Dad always works, as he conveys those endearing qualities we love him for playing this role ~ just like in DELIVERY MAN ~ but what he, Wilkinson and Franco end up giving us in this film, is nothing more than a mixed up menagerie of a little business here, a lot of craziness there, with a ting of real-life drama, which never really goes in any one cohesive direction, making us want to follow them along. Sorry Vince, your one of my favs, but I just can’t bring myself to give you or this film the ALMIGHTY and SACRED Two thumbs up – even though I really wanted to!!!
Kathy Kaiser
MATINEE CHAT with Kathy Kaiser 