Me Time, the new comedy from Netflix that stars Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg, has been given an absolute battering by critics.
The movie, which hit the streaming platform this morning (August 26), sees Hart play Sonny, a stay-at-home dad who is suddenly gifted some "me time" for the first time in many years when his wife volunteers to take his children away for an extended break.
With time on his hands, he decides to reconnect with Wahlberg's Huck Dembo, a life-long bachelor who is hosting an epic birthday party for himself, one that might just kill Sonny in the process.
Produced by Hart, the movie has been written and directed by John Hamburg, the man behind comedy hits like I Love You, Man and Why Him?, while Regina Hall, Jimmy O. Yang, Luis Gerardo Méndez, and Andrew Santino are among the supporting cast.
With Hamburg, who also wrote movies like Meet The Fockers and 2017's hit for Hart Night School, and Wahlberg and Hart's solid record of knockabout comedies, you'd think we'd be in for a banker, but the critics have not been sold. Not by a long shot.
How bad are we talking?
Real bad. Thus far, the movie has a stinking 8% on Rotten Tomatoes among critics. Often, comedies like Me Time aren't well reviewed but score well with audiences. Not this time, the audience ratings, thus far, are down at a horrible 12%.
Pete Travers of ABC News stuck the boot in hard, calling the movie "a laugh-starved" as well as "crushingly dim-witted and disposable." Ouch.
Frank Scheck of the Hollywood Reporter was a little kinder, but also didn't like the movie, signing off with the message that Me Time is a "...hopelessly formulaic star vehicle", but Deadline's Valerie Complex was just as harsh as Travers, writing that it is "...actually impressive how unfunny this film is."
The New York Times' Teo Bugbee was as critical about the movie's production as she was about the script, stating that there's a "...flatness that feels apparent in every shot - and not just because the movie is filmed in bright, low contrast lighting."
The only positive review, thus far, has come from The Only Critic's Nate Adams, who gave the movie a B and wrote that nothing in Me Time "...will shock, but it does garner chuckles." Not exactly effusive, but when you're averaging, take what you can get.
Analysis: Lots of people are still going to watch it right?
Probably. The Man From Toronto, Hart's last team-up with Netflix, which dropped at the end of June, averaged out 24% on Rotten Tomatoes. It still did two weeks at the top of Netflix's Global 10 with over 100 million viewing hours. People love Kevin Hart.
It is worth saying that 8% is a new low for Hart. He's never been a critical favorite, and box office hits like Ride-Along, Get Hard and The Wedding Ringer all scored in the teens and 20s, but Me Time is his current nadir.
Still, the 365 Days duo of erotic-dramas both scored 0% and managed well over 100 million viewing hours each. So, with Hart and Wahlberg's star power and a quiet week in theaters and on streaming services, we fully expect to see Me Time in the Number One spot on Netflix's movie chart next week.
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