Waking Up In Reno: Critic Reviews

Oozes condescension from every pore.

Nothing in Waking Up in Reno ever inspired me to think of its inhabitants as anything more than markers in a screenplay.

A feature-length, R-rated, road-trip version of Mama's Family.

Like Pabst Blue Ribbon, which the characters drink by the case, this bubba comedy about cheating spouses is good for a cheap buzz.

A hillbilly romantic comedy in which the hillbillies show up but the romance and comedy never do.

Finally coming down off of Miramax's deep shelves after a couple of aborted attempts, Waking Up in Reno makes a strong case for letting sleeping dogs lie.

Offers big, fat, dumb laughs that may make you hate yourself for giving in. Ah, what the hell.

Every note rings false.

Four boring characters, a painfully unfunny road trip and drama that's not quite as convincing as a daytime soap opera add up to a wretched time in this redneck romantic comedy.

A lot of weirdness from otherwise good actors.

A bushel of yokel gags and labored boudoir misunderstandings ... culminating with a tipping-the-bellhop gag that first appeared in cave paintings.

...it's hard to imagine what these four stars saw in the script...

I can't begin to tell you how tedious, how resolutely unamusing, how thoroughly unrewarding all of this is, and what a reckless squandering of four fine acting talents...

Everyone's to blame here.

It won't harm anyone, but neither can I think of a very good reason to rush right out and see it. After all, it'll probably be in video stores by Christmas, and it might just be better suited to a night in the living room than a night at the movies.

The whole damn thing is ripe for the Jerry Springer crowd. It's all pretty cynical and condescending, too.