One of the main things I really liked about “We’re the Millers” is that there really is no sudden change of tone or heart by the end of the film. While it isn’t a laugh out loud comedy, it certainly makes for a very entertaining one that relies solely on getting us to empathize with the four degenerates that star. Surely, the four characters that head the narrative aren’t upstanding or even that likable, but the writers succeed in at least making them relatable in the sense that they’re all lacking one thing in their lives and never really admit it to themselves or each other what it is. Family.
“We’re the Millers,” though, remains a dark adult comedy that is often briskly paced and entertaining. It creates four really charming anti-heroes, all of whom have to become a family, or else they could go to jail. What is refreshing is that by the time the film closes, there’s no big change. It’s still just four degenerates that have formed their own demented family unit that will keep them alive and happy. Jason Sudeikis plays Dave Clark, a rotten bitter petty drug dealer, who is blackmailed by a corporate executive friend to ship some marijuana from Mexico in to the US in a few days. In order to sneak back and forth without being caught and jailed, Dave decides to rent an RV and build a fake family that can provide a cover.
Teamed with a juvenile delinquent (Emma Roberts), a stripper (Jennifer Aniston), and an odd neighbor (Will Poulter), they have to maintain their façade, despite their tensions, and differing social skills and lack thereof. Though not always great with sub-plots, much of laughs derive from the chemistry between the primary cast, including Anison and Sudeikis, both of whom garner the best scenes together. Roberts and Poulter also garner their own individual laughs with their own stand out moments, including character Kenny’s passionate singing along to TLC’s “Waterfalls.” It becomes especially funny to see how the foursome mixes with Mexican culture, and how they come across another family of vacationers in an RV that they just can’t shake off, for better and for worse. Especially, when their small shipment snowballs in to a massive one.
A lot of the other sub-plots feel forced, or are just too insignificant to the overall resolution, including the Mexican crime boss that is tracking the Millers, character Kenny’s fondness for the daughter of the other RV going family, and the ridiculous inclusion of a homophobic joke that led nowhere. In either case, “We’re the Millers” is saved by very interesting characters, and hilarious supporting performances by Nick Offerman and Katherine Hahn, both of whom play a cloying, but very quirky married couple intent on befriending Dave and his mock family. “We’re the Millers” is certainly no masterpiece, but it is definitely one of the more bearable comedies to arrive in 2013, and I’m interested to see how the writers approach the inevitable sequel.