Keeping Up with the Joneses (2016)

Directed by: Greg Mottola | 101 minutes | action, comedy | Actors: Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher, Jon Hamm, Gal Gadot, Patton Oswalt, Ming Zhao, Matt Walsh, Maribeth Monroe, Michael Liu, Kevin Dunn, Dayo Abanikanda, Henry Boston, Jack McQuaid, Bobby Lee, Ying He, Yi Dong Qian , Ari Shaffir, Marc Grapey

Take a seasoned comedy duo, Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher. Mix this with a male and a female ‘hunk’: Jon Hamm and Gal Gadot. Let it simmer and what do you get? A disappointing, predictable action comedy. No, director Greg Mottola is nowhere near reaching the level of ‘Superbad’ (2007) and ‘Adventureland’ (2009) with ‘Keeping Up with the Joneses’. There is actually little to enjoy in both areas, the action and the comedy. It’s all a bit flat and that’s a shame with such a promising cast.

The good couple Karen (Fisher) and Jeff Gaffney (Galifianakis) live in a neat, quiet suburb with their two sons. Their life is a repetition of moves. She furnishes houses and he is Human Resource Manager at the company MBI, a company that makes computer chips (modelled after IBM?). Anyway, suddenly there is life in the brewery, because the Joneses become neighbours. Both Tim (Hamm) and Natalie (Gadot) are enviously handsome and perfect at everything they do. One is a travel journalist and the other is a food blogger. Yes, well then they have not counted the innkeeper Karen, because she does not trust the couple from the first meeting. If they find listening devices in their house, the boat is on. The Joneses turn out to be spies and circumstances force Karen and Jeff to play the game of handing over ‘the goods’ to a ruthless arms dealer.

‘Keeping Up with the Joneses’ is a far cry from ‘Mr. and mrs. Smith,” the Jolie/Pitt vehicle from 2005. How striking, Gadot can almost pass as Angelina’s twin sister. But beauty girl Gal is also unable to save the film, although she makes frantic attempts (trying on lingerie, together with Fisher). Galifianakis and Fisher try, but unfortunately the script contains too few comedic elements to really excel. Add to that the dime a dozen action scenes and the completely unbelievable ‘bad guy’ and you have a disappointing film. Nice for in between, but nothing more. At the end credits, you have almost already forgotten all about it. Hopefully director Mottola will be able to get his revenge soon. And Jon “Don Draper” Hamm? He has to choose his roles well (perhaps the new Bond?) in order not to be forgotten as a B actor…