Movie review: The Switch

First of all, despite what the poster says (The most unexpected comedy ever conceived), this movie is far from a comedy. Sure it has some funny bits, but it’s so much more like a drama with funny parts thrown in. I went in expecting a rip-roaring comedy, and was sorely let down. Especially after watching The Other Guys the day before. Anyhow, on to the review.

The Switch is about Kassie- played by Jennifer Aniston, a single lady living in New York who can’t find the perfect guy to start a family with. She decides to take things into her own hands by having a baby through artificial insemination. During a party, her best friend Wally (who is stuck in the friends zone), played by Jason Bateman, gets wasted and swaps Kassie’s donor’s sperm with his own sperm, passes out and remembers nothing. Kassie moves back to her hometown to have the child. Seven years pass, and Kassie returns to New York with her son, Sebastian (played by Thomas Robinson). She meets up with Wally again, and he gets to meet Sebastian, not knowing that he is the father of the boy. As they get closer, Wally discovers that he is Sebastian’s father. He is now stuck with the decision of letting Kassie know before it’s too late, but how does he do it?

In this dramedy, laughs are too few and far between. Wally and Kassie don’t seem to have much chemistry, though you can tell that Wally really likes her and wants to be more than “just friends”. The highlight of the show would be Thomas Robinson’s performance of Sebastian. He was such a joy to watch and played his role really well. Jeff Goldbum, who plays Wally’s good friend and colleague Leonard, was also another highlight of the movie. But other than them, the rest of the cast never really shine.

I felt that the movie had an interesting premise for a comedy, but it wasn’t executed well. The lines were barely witty, and there weren’t any memorable scenes besides the one of Wally in the toilet when ‘the switch’ happens. The storyline is pretty bland, and there aren’t enough challenges or plot twists to keep it interesting all the way. I wouldn’t call it a terrible movie, but I think it could have been so much better. It tries hard to be a comedy, but fails at that and ends up as a very mellow drama piece. I’d rate The Switch 4/10.