Management (1 and 1/2 Stars)

Awkward! This slow paced indie film is best summed up by this one word that not only describes the movie, but in and of itself is "awkward" to say. Have you ever said the word "awkward" and truly listened to it escape your mouth? It's not pretty to say. It's not ugly either. It's not funny. It's not sexy. It's.... uncomfortable. Yes, kinda makes one feel uneasy, much like the film Management, which is often uncomfortable to watch and travels down the creepy, squirmy wormy road several times too many.

Shall we dive into the story now? Steve Zahn's character, Mike, is an aimless man child who works at his parent's motel and he leeches onto Jennifer Aniston's, Sue, a successful businesswoman. Cue many AWKWARD scenes between the two of them. And I'm not talking Steve Carrell from The Office awkward where it can be funny at times. We have a film here that attempts to be deep and deliver a coming of age story centered around a very very very late bloomer. Some moments almost sorta work, but for the most part I never found myself rooting for the main characters to be together. I just wanted Steve Zahn's character to stay away.... far far away from Jennifer Aniston's character.

Next, throw in a great and incredibly random performance by Woody Harrelson who plays a character named... drum roll please... Jango. That's right, Jango. Woody redeems the movie ever so slightly by actually adding some humor and getting a couple good chuckles out of me. Ultimately though, his character seems out of place. Sue does not seem like she would ever be with, let alone engaged to marry, this ex-punk organic yogurt loving dude.

All the characters seemed to be out of character at times. And yes, I do realize that often times characters grow over the course of a movie and Mike did evolve; however, something still seemed off. It was my lack of compassion for any of the characters and their actions that inevitably did me in. A movie that can't deliver characters that are enjoyable to watch isn't typically a movie worth watching... unless there are at least twelve big action scenes with explosions.

The breakdown: Not funny, makes you feel uncomfortable, and attempts to be "real" by tossing death into the mix. Thanks for a couple real downer scenes! Soooooo... enjoy at your own risk. Oh! I almost forgot. If you enjoy butt grabbing, then this movie will delight the pants off of you.