Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

the_doofy I did not score this lower because it did have beautiful cinematography, but it was not that funny. Anyone could of played the three main character guys, there were a few funny moments in the movie, but those were mostly carried out by the support cast. I suppose the narration is where the 'comedy' mainly occursThee were two themes in the movie, Bird watching and family time, which is the conflict, with family time winning out. I did not have too much of a problem with this, but it was not done in any kind of comedy fashion, the movie is a drama comedy. When it comes down to it, the only thing I really enjoyed were the nature parts, those scenes were original for me, the drama messages have all been done a thousand times each in movies.

Michael Ledo My sister and her husband are avid birders. I know a little about the topic. They are ranked in the top 10 within their home state, for their big year.Bostick (Owen Wilson) is in serious competition. The movie is correct in that birders are on an honor system, although there are doubters which is why birders quickly become decent amateur photographers. Just about every year is a "Big Year" for birders as they always keep track of what birds they have seen as well as when and where. Most don't have the time or resources to cross the country several times a year, so they compete within their state.The film shows some aspects of birders such as how life interferes with birding. Or how a birder would rather be in Brownsville, Texas at a dump site than in Paris, France. I have discovered that Birders are also acutely aware of things such as global warming as southern birds move north into new areas. They also know the points of illegal crossings as they visit the southern border at odd hours.The movie has 3 diverse quirky characters competing nation wide to be the best birder. Jack Black and Steve Martin are likeable characters while Owen Wilson is the "bad guy." I had several laugh out loud moments during this feature. Birding is best done as a couples hobby.Good comedy. Good script.

snocarver It is as if the director brought Martin, Cleese, Black, and Wilson into a room and said "look, everyone knows you're funny, but for this movie you're not going to be." Seriously, with that all-star cast, they had to have tried to make this move as unfunny as it was. Sure, it was mildly amusing, likable, well made, well paced, not boring, and I don't regret watching it, hence the 5 out of 10 stars. But I was expecting this movie to be like Best In Show, a satire piece lampooning an absurd, dorky activity. Instead it was a straight-up feel-good piece trying to make us sympathize with these ridiculous people. Also I don't like having my intelligence insulted. There is no way a Rashida Jones falls for a Jack Black, unless he is a millionaire. And there is no way Wilson's character gets a pass from his wife after shirking his duty as husband so grossly. Overall I was insulted that the writers expected me to take the outrageous notion of a Big Year seriously, and to sympathize with these nerds. Disclaimer, I am not a birder, so I probably missed some inside jokes. Sure, birding is a healthy hobby. Going on a Big Year is not. I could respect this pursuit if they actually photographed the birds artfully, or at least for proof, but they do neither. Utter nonsense.

thekarmicnomad This is a film about bird spotting. A three way race to see the most birds in one year.I switched this on with some trepidation, mainly because of the cast. I was expecting lots of zany antics and was sure at some point Jack Black would jump out of a pond with a plastic duck on his head. This did not happen.The film is gentle, restrained and articulate.The story is very plain, don't expect any action or any belly laughs. This restraint works well against the backdrop of bird watching. The writers go to lengths not to poke fun at the "Birders" which was quite refreshing.The main themes look around motivation of people with obsessive hobbies and their relationships with those outside their hobby.This isn't going to make it in to my DVD collection but I do recommend it for a watch. Don't expect too much and you won't be let down.