War Dogs review: This Todd Phillips film is a lost cause - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

War Dogs review: This Todd Phillips film is a lost cause

ByRashid Irani
Aug 21, 2016 10:31 AM IST

Todd Phillips, director of the Hangover series, has made another buddy comedy with a degree of seriousness thrown in. Sadly, it just doesn’t work.

War Dogs
Director: Todd Phillips
Cast: Jonah Hill, Miles Teller
Rating: 1.5 / 5

War Dogs stars Jonah Hill and Miles Teller.(WarDogsMovie/Facebook)
War Dogs stars Jonah Hill and Miles Teller.(WarDogsMovie/Facebook)

He’s at it again. Todd Phillips, the director of the three seldom-funny Hangover movies, has fashioned another purported buddy comedy. This time, he even throws in a soupçon of seriousness for good measure.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The outlandish script is based on a true story and deals with a couple of 20-something stoner pals (Jonah Hill-Miles Teller) who stumble into lucrative careers as military contractors during George W Bush’s second term as President.

Discovering a little-known government initiative that allows small businesses to bid for the supply of munitions to the army, the entrepreneur duo ultimately manages to secure a multi-million-dollar deal with the Pentagon. Sure enough, their get-rich-quick dream turns into a nightmare.

Watch the trailer of War Dogs here:

Tonally inconsistent, the film bounces back and forth between Miami, Baghdad and Albania. Besides discomfiting homophobic overtones (one of the lads previously worked as a masseur), there is the incessant use of the F-word (another recurring term is ‘Holy shit’) and an over-indulgence in freeze frames and slo-mo shots.

Read: War Dogs review | Watch a pair of 20-somethings fool the Pentagon

Though they display little on-screen chemistry, Hill and Teller ably keep the proceedings from lapsing into tedium. In the supporting role of a shady middleman, Bradley Cooper is efficient enough.

The wall-to-wall soundtrack comprises pop-rock tunes by the likes of Pink Floyd, The Who, Iggy Pop and Leonard Cohen.

Essentially trivialising the long-standing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, War Dogs squanders the opportunity for an incisive political exposé.

Oscars 2024: From Nominees to Red Carpet Glam! Get Exclusive Coverage on HT. Click Here

Get more updates from Bollywood, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On