Identity Thief

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Identity Thief
Identity Thief Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Seth Gordon
Screenplay by Craig Mazin
Story by
  • Jerry Eeten
  • Craig Mazin
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Javier Aguirresarobe
Edited by Peter Teschner
Music by Christopher Lennertz
Production
companies
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date
  • February 8, 2013 (2013-02-08)
Running time
111 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million [2]
Box office$175.4 million [2]

Identity Thief is a 2013 American road comedy film directed by Seth Gordon, written by Craig Mazin from a story by Mazin and Jerry Eeten. It stars Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy, Jon Favreau, Amanda Peet, Tip 'T.I.' Harris, Genesis Rodriguez, Morris Chestnut, John Cho, Robert Patrick, and Eric Stonestreet. The film tells the fictional story of Sandy Patterson, a man whose identity is stolen by a female con artist. After the police tell him that it will take up to a year to solve the case, Sandy embarks on a cross-country road trip to find her and clear his name.

Contents

The film received negative reception from critics and grossed $175 million worldwide.

Plot

In Denver, a man named Sandy Patterson is tricked into buying phony identity theft protection from con artist Diana over the phone and he reveals all of his personal information. At work, after clashing with his boss Harold Cornish, Sandy receives a call mentioning that he has an appointment at a salon in Florida. Confused, he ignores it when co-worker Daniel Casey suggests that they and others quit and start their own firm. Sandy agrees to join them.

When paying for gas, Sandy's credit card is declined, and the clerk cuts it in half. The card company says that Sandy spent thousands of dollars in Florida, and he is arrested for missing a court date there. At the Denver police station, detective Reilly eventually determines that Diana stole Sandy's identity. Cops ask Daniel, now his boss, about Sandy's alleged possession of drugs. Sandy's name was used to buy drugs from someone named Paolo. When the cops say that they can do nothing unless the identity thief is in Denver, Sandy offers to retrieve her and convince her to clear his name.

At the salon in Winter Park, Florida, Sandy confronts Diana, who steals his rental car. Finding her address in her abandoned car, he investigates her house, which is full of merchandise and stolen credit cards. The pair scuffle; before Sandy can handcuff her, criminals Marisol and Julian burst in, angry that Diana gave Paolo bad credit cards. After Sandy and Diana escape, Sandy mentions his plan to restore his reputation, and she agrees to help. Meanwhile, a skiptracer is dispatched to track down Diana for a bounty. Because their IDs are identical, airline flight is impossible, and they travel by car.

The skiptracer eventually catches up to the pair and captures Diana. A chase ensues; she knocks him unconscious, and Sandy rams his van off the road. They take the skiptracer's van and tie him up in back. When it overheats, they continue on foot through a forest. Sandy discards his pants after finding a snake in them, and Diana accidentally knocks him unconscious when another bites his neck. Sandy wakes at a bus station; Diana carried him until she flagged down a truck. As the next bus to Denver leaves in three days, Sandy uses money hidden in his socks to buy a $200 car. Meanwhile, Marisol shoots the skiptracer, and the criminals continue their pursuit of Sandy and Diana. For gas money, the pair con an accounts processor and steal Cornish's identity to create new credit cards.

In St. Louis, the two share dinner, and Diana admits that she does not know her real name. The accounts processor enters with cops, who arrest Sandy and Diana. Diana uncuffs herself in the back of the police car, breaks the back windshield, and escapes with Sandy. The skiptracer shoots Marisol and Julian, finds Diana and Sandy on the highway mid-escape, and hits Diana with his car. Sandy comes to her aid, but Diana revives and defensively strikes him in the throat. As Sandy and Diana escape, the skiptracer is arrested by the police alongside Marisol and Julian. Diana and Sandy get home where Diana has dinner with Sandy's family and reconciles with them. That night, Sandy and his wife secretly agree not to turn in Diana even if it means that he will lose his job.

The next morning, Sandy finds Diana gone and a note that apologizes for the trouble she caused. Sandy prepares to quit his job, but Daniel shows him that Diana is meeting with the police in an office. Before Diana is escorted away in cuffs, she briefly explains to Sandy that she knew he wasn't going to turn her in, and that it was the right thing to do for her to do it herself.

One year later, Sandy celebrates another birthday, this time with his third child. The family visits Diana in prison, and Sandy gifts her with her official birth certificate. She opens it and discovers her real name is Dawn Budgie, a name she finds terrible. They both share in a laugh and hug. Upon leaving the visitation room, a guard antagonizes her. Diana punches the guard, and another guard stuns her with a taser. She walks back to her cell, while Sandy displays a look of complete shock.

Cast

Jason Bateman Deauville 2011.jpg
Melissa McCarthy Emmy Week Celebration - 2012.jpg
Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy starred as Sandy and Diana respectively

Production

The film was first conceived as a project with two male leads, but that changed when Bateman saw McCarthy in Bridesmaids and pushed for her to star alongside him. [4] Jerry Eeten wrote an early draft, later finished by Craig Mazin with a final rewrite by Seth Gordon. In January 2012, Gordon was announced as the director of the film with Scott Stuber producing through his Stuber Pictures banner with Bateman and Peter Morgan for DumbDumb. [5] In April 2012, John Cho, Clark Duke and Amanda Peet joined the cast. [6] In May 2012, Jon Favreau [7] and Morris Chestnut [8] also joined the cast.

Some filming took place in Atlanta at the 191 Peachtree Tower, around May 2012. Scenes were also filmed on Peachtree Street in Midtown Atlanta, at The Colonnade restaurant on Cheshire Bridge Road in Morningside, and at Perimeter Mall. [9] Scenes from the film were also shot at Salon 2000 in Ansley Mall.

Release

In March 2012, a release date of May 10, 2013 was announced. [10] In June 2012, the release date changed to February 8, 2013.

Identity Thief was released on Blu-Ray And DVD on June 4, 2013. [11]

Box office

Identity Thief grossed $134.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $40.9 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $175.4 million against a budget of $35 million. [2]

Identity Thief opened at #1 at the box office with $34.6 million in its first weekend, which was considered remarkable by analysts since a major winter storm, often a concern with winter dump months releases, forced theater closings and kept moviegoers at home in the densely populated Northeast. [12]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 20% of 173 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.2/10.The website's consensus reads: ""Identity Thief's few laughs are attributable to Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman, who labor mightily to create a framework for the movie's undisciplined plotline"." [13] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 35 out of 100, based on 41 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. [14] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. [15]

R. Kurt Osenlund of Slant Magazine gave the film a positive review, rating it 3 out of 4 stars, praising McCarthy's performance, writing that she "gives a performance leagues better than anything to be expected in a mainstream, early-in-the-year release, padding a typically sketched character with layers of hilarity and pathos. McCarthy owns 'Identity Thief' with a turn of limitless surprise, making an otherwise adequate comedy soar as a star vehicle. She is riveting in simply-penned moments of remorse and confession, adding tearful depth to her ace timing and formidable physical comedy." [16] Peter Debruge of Variety magazine praises McCarthy but criticizes the script, saying "Melissa McCarthy proves she’s got what it takes to carry a feature, however meager the underlying material." [17] Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 2/4 and wrote: "It wants to be "Midnight Run" meets "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," but it carries little of the dramatic heft and real-world semi-plausibility of those much superior efforts." He concludes "Here's hoping someone finds a much better vehicle for these terrifically talented actors." [18]

Bob Mondello for NPR described the film as "Two Hours Stolen", calling it "a catalog of missed opportunities", and "uninspired trudge of a road movie". Mondello particularly criticizes the script for wasting the talented lead performers, setting up Bateman as stupid and dull, while subverting McCarthy's improvisational skills and undercutting her comic timing with interruptions. [19] James Berardinelli of ReelViews.com gave the film 1/4 and wrote: "This feels a lot like some of the recent, unwatchable Adam Sandler offerings: boorish, unfunny comedy colliding with saccharine, quasi-dramatic filler." He thought the trailer was a fair representation of the film and that viewers that liked it might get more than the few chuckles he got out of the film. Berardinelli says the film is not simply bad but manages to "cross the line into reprehensible." [20] Dana Stevens at Slate.com considers the implications of the “brazenly grotesque" character that McCarthy plays and how it is an uneasy balance between feminist trailblazing and preservation of stereotypes. Stevens would be more willing to forgive the film for "its overfamiliar comic setups and shameless gag-recycling if the movie’s second half didn’t make such an abrupt about-face from soliciting our revulsion to begging for our pity." [21]

In his negative review, Rex Reed made several references to Melissa McCarthy's weight, referring to her as "tractor-sized," "humongous," "obese," and a "hippo," [22] [23] Reed's comments criticism from various film critics. Reed stood by his comments and stated his objection to the use of serious health issues such as obesity as comedy talking points. He dismissed the outrage as being orchestrated for publicity, but praised McCarthy for not getting involved in the matter, calling her "completely classy." [24] [25] McCarthy later responded, expressing surprise the review was published, and said "I felt really bad for someone who is swimming in so much hate. I just thought, that’s someone who’s in a really bad spot, and I am in such a happy spot. I laugh my head off every day with my husband and my kids". [26]

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References

  1. ↑ "Identity Thief (15)". British Board of Film Classification . February 5, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "Identity Thief (2013) - Financial Information". The Numbers .
  3. ↑ "Identity Thief: Ellie Kemper On Her Reaction To The Script". TVGuide . Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Bateman McCarthy Team for ID Theft". August 15, 2011.
  5. ↑ "Seth Gordon set to helm Identity Thief". Variety. January 17, 2012.
  6. ↑ Kit, Borys (April 17, 2012). "John Cho, Clark Duke in for Identity Thief". The Hollywood Reporter.
  7. ↑ "Jon Favreau catches Identity Thief". Variety. May 2, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Morris Chestnut joins Identity Thief". May 24, 2012. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Jason Bateman filming in Atlanta". May 1, 2012. Archived from the original on August 15, 2012. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Identity Thief gets a release date". March 2, 2012.
  11. ↑ Jeff, Labrecque (May 20, 2013). "Melissa McCarthy in Identity Thief Blu-ray". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  12. ↑ "UPDATED: Winter Storm Nemo Fails To Stop 'Identity Thief' From Shattering Expectations". Boxoffice . February 9, 2013. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Identity Thief". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved January 11, 2025. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  14. ↑ "Identity Thief". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Melissa McCarthy leads 'Identity Thief' to biggest opening of 2013". Los Angeles Times . February 10, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
  16. ↑ Osenlund, R. Kurt (February 6, 2013). "Identity Thief - Film Review - Slant Magazine". Slant Magazine . Retrieved April 7, 2014.
  17. ↑ Debruge, Peter (February 6, 2013). "Identity Thief". Variety .
  18. ↑ Roeper, Richard (February 6, 2013). "Identity Thief Movie Review & Film Summary (2013)". Chicago Sun-Times .
  19. ↑ Bob (February 8, 2013). "'Identity Thief': Nearly Two Hours, Stolen". NPR.org.
  20. ↑ Berardinelli, James (February 8, 2013). "Identity Thief". Reelviews Movie Reviews.
  21. ↑ Stevens, Dana (February 8, 2013). "Melissa McCarthy and the problem of the grotesque". Slate Magazine.
  22. ↑ Reed, Rex. "Declined: In Identity Thief, Bateman's Bankable Billing Can't Lift This Flick out of the Red". New York Observer. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
  23. ↑ "Critic calls Melissa McCarthy 'tractor-sized,' 'hippo' in review of new film" Archived 2013-04-20 at the Wayback Machine , Today, February 7, 2013
  24. ↑ Seth Abramovitch (February 13, 2013). "Rex Reed Defends Melissa McCarthy Remarks: 'Don't Make Me the Villain'". The Hollywood Reporter .
  25. ↑ Joyce Chen (June 21, 2013). "Rex Reed Refuses to Apologize for Melissa McCarthy Comments: "I Stand By All of My Original Remarks"". US . Archived from the original on June 21, 2013.
  26. ↑ Dave Itzkoff (June 13, 2013). "Melissa McCarthy Goes Over the Top". New York Times . Archived from the original on June 16, 2013.
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