Underrated Comedy: Ricky Stanicky

The other night I got home from work and could not fall asleep. Usually to wind my brain down and zonk out I open up a book or throw on Seinfeld to pass out to. But earlier in the day my friend Vincent told me that I needed to watch "Ricky Stanicky" with John Cena, Zac Efron, and "the redhead guy from Dave" on the prestigious Amazon Prime.

A ringing endorsement indeed. To say I was less than enthused was an understatement.

But I decided to take his word for it. And to my surprise, he was right. 

It turns out that Ricky Stanicky is one of those movies that sneaks up on you with how funny it actually is. It’s not reinventing comedy or pretending to be smarter than it is. It just leans into the ridiculousness and lets the cast have fun. The result is a light hearted, laugh-out-loud surprise that doesn’t take itself too seriously and reminds you why silly comedies still matter.

John Cena, in particular, is the unexpected MVP. 

I was actually shocked at how good of a comedian actor he was in this.

He’s got this endearing mix of self-awareness and physical comedy that takes a pretty simple role and turns it into something genuinely entertaining. He commits so hard that it elevates every scene he’s in, striking that sweet spot between absurd and oddly heartfelt. Kind of like old school Adam Sandler movies. (One of my favorites ever, That's My Boy, in particular.)

Here's the trailer. 

And here's one of the more ridiculous scenes from the movie showing Cena's character, "Rod", at his day job in Atlantic City

If you’re in the mood for something light and goofy, and easy to throw on after a long day, Ricky Stanicky hits the spot. 

It’s the kind of movie that doesn’t demand your full attention. If you go in not expcting it to change your life, and all you need is a couple of laughs, it makes for couple of enjoyable hours.