It's not hysterically funny, but this British comedy is sharp enough to keep us chuckling right to the predictably sappy conclusion.
Run, Fat Boy, Run (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:143
Fresh:69
Rotten:74
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: Run, Fat Boy, Run features sporadic laughs, but is ultimately too formulaic and predictable.
Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for some rude and sexual humor, nudity, language and smoking.
Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Genre: Comedies
Theatrical Release:07-09-2007
Synopsis: DENNIS (Simon Pegg) is an ordinary guy. He's a little overweight and he smokes, but he's nice, charming and unassuming. However, five years ago, Dennis did something that wasn't so nice. On his... DENNIS (Simon Pegg) is an ordinary guy. He's a little overweight and he smokes, but he's nice, charming and unassuming. However, five years ago, Dennis did something that wasn't so nice. On his wedding day to his pregnant fiancé LIBBY (Thandie Newton), Dennis did a runner. He just couldn't go through with it. He didn't think he was good enough for Libby, so instead of ruining her life, he ruined her big day. Now, five years later, Dennis realizes he made a big mistake. He's still in love with Libby. He still sees her all the time because of JAKE (Matthew Fenton), their five-year-old son, but all romantic ties have been severed. Libby's now seeing WHIT (Hank Azaria), a charming professional from the City, and Dennis takes an immediate dislike to him. Whit is casual, easy-going, successful and good with Jake; much to Dennis's annoyance. How can Dennis compete with him? In direct contrast to Whit's sleek lifestyle in the City, Dennis is a mere security guard for a ladies retail store. He doesn't earn much money and he's well behind on his rent, something which his landlord, MR GHOSHDASHTIDAR (Harish Patel), doesn't take lightly. Mr G's daughter MAYA (India de Beaufort) is particularly intent on evicting Dennis and replacing him with a much more reliable tenant. Compared to Whit's effortless abilities, everything Dennis attempts seems to end in disaster. Even when he wants to take Jake to see "Lord of the Rings: The Musical," he finds himself in trouble with the police for trying to buy from a ticket tout. There is no help forthcoming from Dennis' feckless best friend GORDON (Dylan Moran), whose life is just as much of a mismatch. Gordon's main sources of interest are the poker games held at the back of a piano store with a bunch of misfits: GROVER, CLAUDINE and MICKEY, overseen by the imperious VINCENT (Simon Day). Dennis feels demoralized and overwhelmed by Whit's long list of achievements. In a last-ditch effort to prove to Libby that he's changed his ways, Dennis impulsively announces at her birthday party that he will run in the same London Marathon that Whit has been training for. But does Dennis have the stuff to trade his cold feet for running shoes? RUN, FAT BOY, RUN is a romantic comedy that affirms that true love isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. --© Picturehouse [More]
Starring: Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Dylan Moran, Hank Azaria
Starring: Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Dylan Moran, Hank Azaria, Ameet Chana, Harish Patel, David Walliams, Stephen Merchant
Director: David Schwimmer
Director: David Schwimmer
Screenwriter: Michael Ian Black, Simon Pegg
Story: Michael Ian Black
Producer: Robert Jones, Sarah Curtis
Composer: Alex Wurman
Studio: Lions Gate Films
Reviews for Run, Fat Boy, Run
It is an immensely likable, big-hearted romantic comedy that has a wide-ranging appeal as unpretentious feel-good escapism and a perfect date movie choice.
...excessive product-placement has turned the film into one enormous ad for Nike, with all the chilling humourlessness that this implies.
Pegg exudes his usual air of faint self-congratulation playing an unlikeable prat whom nobody in their right mind would prefer to the high- flying Azariah or indeed to anyone.
An enjoyable if patchy and predictable ride, but Simon Pegg shows he's more than capable of going the distance.
You’ll laugh a bit, but not much, while your interest in the storyline will hover between mild interest and vague indifference. Needless to say, all memories of this movie will evaporate on contact with daylight.
Schwimmer often resists an easy laugh in favour of a poignant moment and thereby heightens the sense of urgency during Dennis' last dash for glory.
Pegg proves agreeable company in a lightweight Britcom whose biggest laughs emanate from its supporting cast.
Friends star David Schwimmer proves that nothing wins over a crowd like a barking underdog and bags of below-the-belt humour - his directing debut is a wheeze.
What should be dreadfully synthetic actually plays as a pleasant time-passer, thanks to a goodly supply of one-liners, and Pegg and Newton’s facility for investing a string of hokey plot devices with genuine warmth. Formulaic, yet disarmingly enjoyable.
Pegg pitched Shaun of the Dead as "Richard Curtis shot through the head." Run, Fat Boy, Run comes on more like "Richard Curtis kicked in the nuts" - a refreshingly honest Britcom that never really threatens the ribs but which is amiable company throughout
Enjoyable, sharply written and frequently hilarious comedy with strong comic performances from its cast. This should strike a chord with slightly overweight men everywhere.
Far from the gut-busting brilliance of Pegg's other, self-made starring vehicles.
This feeble premise limits the movie to perfunctory gags about the hero's sloth and some canned underdog drama.
The film, like its flabby aspiring marathon runner protagonist, feels shapeless and exhausted from the sheer effort of trying to please audiences.
The picture manages to juggle both the silly and the sentimental without falling flat.
Schwimmer completely lacks what it takes to ever get this movie off the ground. The story is fairly formula and the actors are basically on mark, yet the jokes (most of which are so predictable they are telegraphed a mile in advance) land with a virtually
It's a Generation X movie in a way very few movies are any more; it is unseemly to admit that our generation is about as slackery as we had promised to become. Go with your ex and smile.
Latest News for Run, Fat Boy, Run
September 24, 2008:
The film, like its flabby aspiring marathon runner protagonist, feels shapeless and exhausted from the sheer effort of trying to please audiences. ![]()
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August 15, 2008:
CinWorld: The film, like its flabby aspiring marathon runner protagonist, feels shapeless and exhausted from the sheer effort of trying to please audiences. ![]()
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