Nature Calls, 2012.
Written and Directed by Todd Rohal.
Starring Patton Oswalt, Johnny Knoxville, Rob Riggle and Patrice O’Neal.
SYNOPSIS:
Polar-opposite brothers Randy and Kirk never saw eye-to-eye, but their rivalry is taken to a new level when Randy hijacks Kirk’s son’s sleepover, taking the boys on a Scout Trip to remember.
When it comes to comedies I don’t typically ask for much. As long as you have jokes that are actually funny, competent actors giving decent performances and a somewhat interesting story that I can get invested in then I’ll be a happy camper. None of that is the case when it comes to Nature Calls, one of the more recent movies to get the ongoing VOD treatment in North America.
Once I saw the trailer for this I didn’t have high hopes, but I never thought it could be as bad as it ended being. You’ve got Patton Oswalt as the lead here and not even he can save this movie from being a complete train wreck. Oswalt has proven here lately that he’s actually a pretty decent actor in movies like Young Adult, but after being in this I wouldn’t be surprised if it set his acting career back a little bit. Johnny Knoxville (Jackass) plays Oswalt’s brother and he is being his normal self, like he is in every movie. You’d think filmmakers would quit casting Knoxville considering he’s yet to show any kind of acting skills or comedic talent.
The movie itself doesn’t even try to make you laugh. There was clearly no effort put into this by anyone involved and it just makes me wonder why it was even made in the first place. It’s hard to explain what kind of comedy this is exactly because it really is all over the place. At times it feels like a kids movie but it’s rated R so there’s a lot of the f-word being thrown around as well. None of the jokes work, the sight gags fall flat and for a comedy the story couldn’t be more boring.
The supporting cast don’t help to make Nature Calls any better either; you have about eight to ten kids that are a big part of the movie but you really never learn much about them or even some of their names and they just feel like plot devices. It doesn’t help that all of them, except for the main kid who plays Knoxville’s adopted son, are extremely annoying. Rob Riggle (21 Jump Street) and the late Patrice O’Neal (Furry Vengeance) have roles here that anybody could have played. This is without a doubt the most annoying that Riggle has ever been in anything I’ve seen him in. Poor Maura Tierney (The Good Wife) plays Johnny Knoxville’s wife and she isn’t given hardly anything to do which is a shame because she’s usually a great actress.
Even though Nature Calls isn’t even an hour and twenty minutes long it overstays its welcome quickly. Unfunny jokes, actors who look like they have no interest in making this at all, and a story you couldn’t care less about make Nature Calls one camping trip you should definitely miss out on.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ / Movie: ★
Jake Peffer
Originally published March 10, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
