snocarver It is as if the director brought Martin, Cleese, Black, and Wilson into a room and said "look, everyone knows you're funny, but for this movie you're not going to be." Seriously, with that all-star cast, they had to have tried to make this move as unfunny as it was. Sure, it was mildly amusing, likable, well made, well paced, not boring, and I don't regret watching it, hence the 5 out of 10 stars. But I was expecting this movie to be like Best In Show, a satire piece lampooning an absurd, dorky activity. Instead it was a straight-up feel-good piece trying to make us sympathize with these ridiculous people. Also I don't like having my intelligence insulted. There is no way a Rashida Jones falls for a Jack Black, unless he is a millionaire. And there is no way Wilson's character gets a pass from his wife after shirking his duty as husband so grossly. Overall I was insulted that the writers expected me to take the outrageous notion of a Big Year seriously, and to sympathize with these nerds. Disclaimer, I am not a birder, so I probably missed some inside jokes. Sure, birding is a healthy hobby. Going on a Big Year is not. I could respect this pursuit if they actually photographed the birds artfully, or at least for proof, but they do neither. Utter nonsense.

tbjorgensen90 The Big Year is a decent film, but I'm left with the feeling that it could have been A LOT better if it had not been dragged through the Hollywood machine. The choice of music is horrible and generally feels very uninspired. Generally every aspect of the movie (except for the theme Birding) feels VERY Hollywood.Jack Black's character does a lot of voice overs. While there's nothing wrong with voice overs (if done properly), if feels like they did them so the film wouldn't be too long and boring.The three main characters (played by Jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson) are great, and the actors' performances are top notch. But I don't think we truly ever get under their skin. Which is a shame.Another thing (SPOILERS), I don't like how Owen Wilson's character is labeled a loser in the end because he chooses birding over his marriage. The film does make a good point of asking what kind of sacrifices you're willing to make just for the sake of your hobby. But to me, it feels like the film is telling us that Wilson's character is a loser just because he doesn't have a girlfriend. Marriage isn't for everyone.It could have been so much better, maybe if it had been handled by independent filmmakers. But I do have to give the film kudos just for making a film about something as special as birding.

l_rawjalaurence The idea for THE BIG YEAR sounds fascinating; the fact that people spend most of their time and energy trying to spot as many birds as possible during a calendar year offers fascinating possibilities for the exploration of obsession, as well as including some wonderful footage of the birds themselves.While David Frankel's film manages to fulfill the second requirement, it fails notably on the first. Rather than exploring the characters of its three protagonists (Jack Black, Owen Wilson, Steve Martin), it relapses into a familiar tale of the ugly duckling with little money (Black) taking on the big boys (Wilson, Martin) in the Big Year competition. No one is initially prepared to admit that they are actually participating; but when they do, Black and Martin form an alliance against the cocky, arrogant Wilson, who believes that he is obviously the best, his position unchallengeable.THE BIG YEAR includes some stunning photography - by Lawrence Sher - as well as some picture-postcard views of various locations in the United States. On the whole, however, the picture descends into sentimentality, especially in its depiction of the relationship between Black's character and his crusty father (Brian Dennehy), or the way in which Martin's character becomes so human that he is prepared to give up an opportunity to become the president of 3M worldwide. The ending is wearily predictable, although there are a few incidental laughs along the way.

Mr Black This my kind of film. Well done with an original story, based on script and character. I a big Steve Martin fan. I pretty much liked everything he has ever done. The whole story line with him and Owen Wilson and Jack Black works really well together as does the rest of the supporting players who have smaller roles. It's not a slapstick comedy - it's a clever comedy. It also takes a look at peoples lives - Three men, all from radically different backgrounds but all have their own home situations. I thought it was clever how they wove this story based around bird watching into what it is. It also has a lot of great scenic photography from around the country which is nice to see. It is now on my 'favorites' list.