He tackled office working lives with "Office Space" followed by social de-evolution with "Idiocracy." Now Mike Judge presents a comedic look into running a business in "Extract."
"Extract" follows the life of business owner Joel (Jason Bateman), as his assets begin to fall apart. His workers cause a freak accident that results in a worker named Step losing half of his manhood. Somehow, con-artist Cindy (Mila Kunis) works her way into the situation, convincing Step to sue the company. To make matters worse for Joel, he discovers his wife is cheating on him. All aspects come crashing together only to find a happy ending, because it's a comedy.
I need to stop putting faith in Mike Judge. "Office Space" was utterly brilliant, with a great cast of characters and a hilarious plot to support. "Idiocracy" had funny components for me, but it lacked a likeable cast and story. He created the shows "Beavis and Butthead" and "King of the Hill," which aren't my cup of tea. I was hopeful going into "Extract" because it seemed like the reversed roles from "Office Space." However, the film falls flat with uneven characters and overused jokes. Bateman and Ben Affleck do a great job in the film, as well as Kristen Wiig. She surprised me as a serious actress and gained my respect. Kunis on the other hand was boring and as completely uneven as her character. The actors did well to support what movie there was.
The comedy never rose above sophomoric. There was no elegance to the humor and most jokes involved making fun of one testicle. Some scenes were well done, such as a giant bong and an adult film spoof. A single joke about calling Domino's to deliver a Pepsi did make me break out laughing, rather than the chuckle of disgust that every other one earned.
The style of the film was not bad at all, but it was a standard comedy. The two aforementioned innovative scenes did spark my interest due to the great camera styling and lighting, but otherwise it was dry and ordinary.
I have several problems with the film, the first being Kunis' character Cindy. She was uninteresting. I have no problem with a character having no backstory, but I felt that she has absolutely no reason to be in this film. Why is she in this town? Why is she a con-artist? If you want a con movie, check out "The Brothers Bloom" or "The Sting." Her plot line was completely unnecessary because in the end, she folds up and goes against character to resolve the film.
Another problem I have is the lack of a clear theme. I believe the theme is supposed to be confronting your conflicts head on. Tension arises when characters don't address each other in person. Joel doesn't confront his wife about never having sex nor do he and his wife confront their annoying neighbor (who is brilliant and hilarious). When they finally do confront the problems, like the film preaches, they are SOL. So what is the theme then? I don't know. Be nice to your employees? Learn people's names? Don't do drugs? All are feasible guesses.
Finally, the title really is a throwaway. "Extract" refers to the flavored extracts that Joel's factory produces, but that's it. I thought a title like this might refer to other aspects, like extracting information and such, but no. It's a shallow title and movie. Maybe it references extracting information through other people; or extracting money, in the case of the con artist Cindy.
"Extract" was nothing more or less than a flat comedy that slapped on an R-rating. It didn't need the R, but it had it. The acting is actually good for most of the cast, but the story is flawed, boring and predictably cliché. If you want to see something in theaters this weekend, don't spend full price on this one.
This has been Scene Selection, next week check back in to find out what's hip. Until then, get busy livin, or get busy dyin.
Grade: C
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