Skip to main content

Dome Pondering Movie Review: The Change-Up (2011)

What is it about? 

A career driven family man and his best friend who is a carefree bachelor, end up switching bodies during a crucial time in both of their lives. 

Who is in it? 

Jason Bateman - Dave Lockwood

Ryan Reynolds - Mitch Planko

Leslie Mann - Jamie Lockwood

Olivia Wilde - Sabrina McArdle

Favorite Scene: 

When Mitch (in Dave's body) wakes up and has to feed the babies in the middle of the night, he struggles to handle them both as the babies end up playing with knives, the electric socket, and the blender before he was able to get the situation under control. 

Favorite Quote:

Dave: [in Mitch's body, showing his date outfit comprising of an outdated, ill-fitting shirt and triple-pleated khakis] So, how do I look? 
Mitch Planko: [in Dave's body, cringing at the date look] Well, all you have to do is just grow a mustache and lure a ten-year old kid into your van. 
---
Mitch Planko: Life doesn't always turn out exactly how you planned it. Sometimes, just sometimes, it turns out better.

Review: 

Yes, I'm sure your thought on the Change-Up from the description and the trailer was the same as mine, and I am here to say - The Change-Up is simply the male, grown up version of Freaky Friday. Two men switch lives, they go through problems, eventually discover a new perspective on life, then switch back, and everyone lives happily ever after. 

So yes, the plot isn't what you should be watching this film for, as it is totally predictable. However, the journey, like Freaky Friday, does make for some funny moments, and some other interesting scenarios. 

Jason Bateman did a great job in his role, and Ryan Reynolds was simply awesome. Especially fun to see the bachelor character that slightly mirrored the well-known Van Wilder character. 

At times the film can seem a bit crude and raunchy for really no reason other than to seem like the R rated version of Freaky Friday, but it is still a decent movie that is worth a look in your spare time. 

Review: 2.75/5

Recently Read

Quick Ponder: Future Self

We always think,  what would we say  to our  younger self? However,  what would  our younger self say  if they met us, today?

Turning 40 - Grateful and Renewed

I became a forty-year-old individual yesterday.  The milestone is very significant for many and has its societal measures and benchmarks that carry some fear for those approaching its gates. Regardless of approach, turning 40 is filled with reflection, pondering (of course), and preparation for what should be a "new" stage of life. A life stage centered around "transitioning" into a stage seen as the "pre-senior" years.  Sure. Whatever.  I won't disagree that the new "4" digit that sits in front of your age feels encompassing even without understanding completely. Yet, as I stated last year when I turned 39 (going into my 40th year on this earth), I was ready for it. Ready for 40. Today, oddly enough, I am not filled with profound life lessons, ponderings, or reflections.  I sit here, punching the keys, filled with gratitude. I am 40, and I love it.   I carry my baggage of life and bear scars from it at 40. I am grateful for so many experien...

Knicks Trauma - Ugh Not Again

Well, that was a kick in the stomach.  Coming off a week where the word "catharsis" was used as the description for the euphoria and release of joy from two and a half decades of suffering, Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers brought about another word - trauma.  Watching the Knicks collapse was the kind of moments that come with these deep runs and moments. NBA Playoff basketball will do that. Yet, this loss - this one - feels about as bad as the 2004 ALCS when the Yankees collapsed in the series to the Boston Red Sox.  That one carries some serious trauma. Luckily, the series isn't over.  Some other quick thoughts from this awful, awful night, New York Knicks Basketball.  - Not to conjure up hyperbole, or even contribute to "hot take" sports reaction culture - but this might have been the worst loss in Knicks franchise history. I cannot think of another in my lifetime, or historically.  - Tyrese Haliburton's "choke"...