Hollywood has shown audiences a ton of different versions of the “meeting the parents” scenario, with some clear hits and misses along the way. Netflix is hoping that its latest take on the couple's rite of passage in The Out-Laws provides enough of a twist to attract an audience with its new action comedy, available to stream with a Netflix subscription as of July 7. Adam Devine and Nina Dobrev star as the to-be-married duo, and the critics who were able to screen the movie ahead of its release have weighed in with their thoughts about the action rom-com.
In addition to the Workaholics and The Vampire Diaries actors as Owen and Parker, respectively, The Out-Laws also stars Pierce Brosnan and Ellen Barkin as Parker’s parents. All is not as it appears for bank manager Owen when his future in-laws turn out to be criminals nicknamed the “Ghost Bandits,” and his fiancée is kidnapped. Let’s see what the critics have to say about the Netflix romp, starting with Collider’s Tania Hussain. She grades the movie a C-, but admits it’s often laugh-out-loud funny, saying:
The Out-Laws has a workable premise with a great star-studded cast led by a sincere DeVine and is funny with great potential outside its humor. But it never hits the mark and only works in pieces due to recycled ideas and formulaic tropes across clichéd writing. The film works hard to be likable but it takes some heartbreakingly lazy turns that don’t elevate the story or its characters. Because of this, it’s hard to tell what the movie wants to be and just how far it can go with a basic premise.
Murtada Elfadl of Variety points to films with similar plotlines, like Meet the Parents and Fun with Dick and Jane, as examples of why The Out-Laws could have been funnier. However, the critic says the screenplay resorts to juvenile humor targeting the lowest common denominator. Elfadi continues:
A by-the-books comedy, The Out-Laws misses its target. It doesn’t make its audience laugh, and it wastes its cast by putting them in the most obvious situations and giving them forgettable jokes. The fact Devine produced and developed the project makes it all the more disappointing that it squanders his manic energy. He’s in a rare position to make what he wants at Netflix, which means he’s basically robbing from himself.
If The Out-Laws fails in the eyes of the critics, however, it’s possibly not for lack of trying. Noel Murray of the L.A. Times finds its raunchiness and action sequences “a bit too much,” explaining:
Every joke and action scene is cranked up further than necessary. Risqué dialogue turns raunchy; simple heists go to a Mission: Impossible level. The safes the Ghost Bandits break into are science-fiction super-safes. When Owen’s mom (Julie Hagerty) and dad (Richard Kind) embarrass him in front of the McDermotts by talking about sex, the conversation drifts into X-rated descriptions of orgies with NFL players. This is the kind of movie where it’s not enough for a clumsy Owen to fall to the ground comically; he also has to have a worm drop onto his face and crawl up his nose. Everything’s extra.
Pete Hammond of Deadline says audiences willing to settle for sheer mayhem will be engaged, but the Netflix film fails to deliver the fun and heart the stacked cast is capable of. Hammond writes:
There might be better ways to endear yourself to your new in-laws but not in this scenario, which is full of all sorts of stunts, chases, shootouts, and madcap shenanigans that never slow down to reveal much more than a single dimension of this group of characters struggling to resemble living, breathing human beings.
David Ehrlich of IndieWire gives The Out-Laws the grade of C, calling the action comedy “passable,” with Ellen Barkin and Pierce Brosnan being better than they needed to be for the movie with what the critic calls a “first-drafty” feel. Ehrlich continues:
It all builds to a celebratory dance scene that spills over into the end credits, by which point Netflix has already squeezed the movie into the top-left corner of your screen and started a countdown to the trailer for its new WHAM! documentary. It’s the rare case of a comedy getting exactly the ending it deserves.
With a Rotten Tomatoes critics rating of just 26%, this “meet the parents” action comedy may not be getting off to the strongest start. But despite any issues people have with the script, many who have seen the movie found things to enjoy in the performances and with some raunchy chuckle-worthy humor.
If this sounds like a movie you’d like to check out, grab the microwave popcorn, because it is available for streaming now. Also be sure to see what else is new and coming soon to Netflix, and if you’re hoping to get out of the house for your next movie, take a peek at our 2023 Movie Schedule to see what’s hitting the big screen soon.
