This movie COULD have been funny, but there are a few problems.
The first one is quite obvious: Jack Black. He can't seem to do anything anymore other than be 1/2 of Tenacious D. Increasingly, his performances are becoming idiotic and over the top, with the same tired mannerisms and behaviors. If you've seen a movie with Jack Black in it prior to this, then you've already seen his performance here. The director is partially to blame for this, and could have given him a chance to be something other than a moron.
There in lies the other major problem: there is no direction here. The audience should be hopeful for their protagonist, and even though it's a short part of the film before Gulliver arrives in Lilliput, there was plenty of opportunity to make you care about his plight, despite it being your typical "boy longs for girl" routine. But that doesn't happen here, instead it's just more of Black's aping around, playing his "lovable loser" bit.
These two issues ruin the film: a familiar plot with little effort to make it unique, while Jack Black runs around playing Jack Black. By the time the climax comes, you don't really care what happens. Of course, actors and directors can only do so much with what they've got... and with jokes like "President the Awesome" as a punch line, you can't really expect much.
The last issue that really detracted from the quality of the film was the production. The effects were so noticeably computer generated, that it took you out of the film, from the battle scene in the ocean, to the scenes where Jack Black is interacting with Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, et al.
The only positive of the film was Chris O'Dowd's performance, but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to save it from the bottom of the barrel.
The first one is quite obvious: Jack Black. He can't seem to do anything anymore other than be 1/2 of Tenacious D. Increasingly, his performances are becoming idiotic and over the top, with the same tired mannerisms and behaviors. If you've seen a movie with Jack Black in it prior to this, then you've already seen his performance here. The director is partially to blame for this, and could have given him a chance to be something other than a moron.
There in lies the other major problem: there is no direction here. The audience should be hopeful for their protagonist, and even though it's a short part of the film before Gulliver arrives in Lilliput, there was plenty of opportunity to make you care about his plight, despite it being your typical "boy longs for girl" routine. But that doesn't happen here, instead it's just more of Black's aping around, playing his "lovable loser" bit.
These two issues ruin the film: a familiar plot with little effort to make it unique, while Jack Black runs around playing Jack Black. By the time the climax comes, you don't really care what happens. Of course, actors and directors can only do so much with what they've got... and with jokes like "President the Awesome" as a punch line, you can't really expect much.
The last issue that really detracted from the quality of the film was the production. The effects were so noticeably computer generated, that it took you out of the film, from the battle scene in the ocean, to the scenes where Jack Black is interacting with Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, et al.
The only positive of the film was Chris O'Dowd's performance, but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to save it from the bottom of the barrel.