REVIEW: A.C.O.D.

Courtesy of Film Arcade

A comedic narrative stocked with mostly unlikable characters is tricky to navigate. Do it properly and the audience can’t help but love the characters despite their obnoxious behavior (see the first three seasons of Arrested Development). Focusing too much on the protagonists’ faults and too little on the comedy results in a bunch of people acting like unrepentant jerks for no discernible reason (see the fourth season of Arrested Development). 

A.C.O.D., currently playing in limited release, comes perilously close to plunging into the second category, redeemed only by a supremely talented cast that is still mostly confined by Ben Karlin and Stu Zicherman’s wobbly screenplay. The titular acronym stands for “Adult Children of Divorce,” referring to main character Carter (Adam Scott).

The successful restaurant owner has managed to lead a somewhat normal life despite the constant whirlwind of insanity caused by his parents’ (Richard Jenkins and Catherine O’Hara) decades-ago split. He has managed to orchestrate a fragile peace for the last few years, but it comes to a brutal end as two new developments upend everyone’s lives.

First, Carter’s little brother (Clark Duke) announces he’s getting married, which gives their ridiculous parents a green light to make the event all about them. Next, Carter discovers that his longtime therapist (Jane Lynch) isn’t actually a therapist at all – she was just writing a book about the unique hell children of divorced parents are forced to endure. And now she wants to write a sequel about the kind of adults those kids grew up to be. The confluence of all this stress leads Carter to become increasingly unhinged, until he realizes that he’s starting to act a lot like his folks.

Scott, who plays a nicer, saner version of this character on NBC’s Parks and Recreation (he even had a similar subplot in a 2012 episode), is also great at playing jerks, so filming A.C.O.D. was probably a breeze for him. I just wish the script gave him more to do besides stew silently until he erupts into a frenzy of cursing and erratic behavior. His co-stars have the same problem, though Jenkins and O’Hara emerge as the film’s MVPs through raw talent and experience.

Amy Poehler and Ken Howard are wasted in their few scenes as Carter’s newest stepparents (Poehler also plays Scott’s wife on Parks and Rec, which makes their scenes here feel a bit creepy), and Jessica Alba shows up halfway through the flick for no reason whatsoever. I genuinely don’t understand why her character exists. Lynch is terrific as always, but her character behaves so unethically that it’s hard to believe she’d still have a career.

Zicherman, making his directorial debut, doesn’t help matters with his lethargic pacing. A.C.O.D. is 88 minutes but feels twice as long. Still, the film has several chuckle-worthy moments, and fans of cringe humor while find plenty of scenes to enjoy. 

A.C.O.D. is rated R for language and brief sexual content. 

Grade: C+