Step Brothers: Funny if it's new to you

A fellow blogger at The Dark of the Matinee wrote about his dislike for the new Will Ferrell/John C. Reilly comedy Step Brothers:

"If you're curious about what you're in for, pop in the DVD of WALK HARD, BLADES OF GLORY, or TALLADEGA NIGHTS. That's the bottle of humour you're in for...except with STEP BROTHERS you're getting the bottle that's been opened and left on the counter for three days. In the sun."

However, if you haven't seen Walk Hard, Blades of Glory, or Talladega Nights then I assume the logic is that Step Brothers is all new comedy. And that's about how I found it. I really liked parts of Blades of Glory, but haven't seen the other two movies, and thus found Step Brothers really funny at parts and just as stupid as all Will Ferrell movies for the rest of it.

It starts with Mary Steenbergen and Richard Jenkins falling in love and getting married. They have to move their nearly 40-year old sons into the same house. However, these kids are barely more than teenagers. They won't take care of themselves, still see all the value in bunkbeds, and can make best friends by reciting several facts in common. These guys take the "Failure to Launch" concept to a whole new level. They're not just taking advantage of their parents, but nearly incapable of getting and keeping a job or an apartment or anything else most 40 year olds are capable of attaining. Ferrell also has another full sibling, Derek, who is a total jerk that I would have punched a bunch of times, and when Reilly does punch him, it cements his friendship with Ferrell. They make plans and vaguely attempt to be grown-ups for a while, but their child-like fascination with themselves wins out and they become successful as they are. It's not a terrific movie, but there are a lot of really funny moments like the bunk beds collapsing, the wookie mask, and the Randy Jackson sword. I found it very entertaining and know a lot of people who probably would too, unless they've already seen the same story already.