Common Sense Media Review
By Jenny Nixon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Mediocre grossout comedy has sexuality, drug abuse.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Office Race
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
OFFICE RACE tells the story of an underachieving, depressed man-child named Pat (Beck Bennett of Saturday Night Live) who works for a Venmo-like money transfer app. When Pat is passed over for a promotion, he's told he needs to secure an important client named Rita (Erinn Hayes, Children's Hospital) or risk being fired. Hoping to impress Rita, Pat commits himself to training for a fundraising charity marathon with her running group despite his utter lack of interest in the sport. A rivalry soon develops between Pat and his fitness-obsessed boss (Joel McHale, Community), which escalates to ridiculous heights and has wild repercussions on his work and home life.
Is It Any Good?
A tired premise and lackluster script weigh down this crass and disappointing sports comedy. Office Race is packed with stale, sophomoric humor and gross-out visual gags carried out by a cast that seems to be sleepwalking through their roles. McHale plays the same type of insufferable creep we've seen him do countless times before, and the talents of Alyson Hannigan (How I Met Your Mother) and Kelsey Grammer (Frasier) are completely wasted in tiny, throwaway roles. Beck Bennett is well-cast as an aimless slacker, but Pat's lack of charisma makes it hard to feel invested in him as a main character. This certainly isn't the first raunchy sports comedy full of wisecracking jerks, but it's definitely one of the least appealing.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about other Saturday Night Live stars who have attempted to transition to the film world. Who do you think has done this successfully, and what made those movies work?
What do you think of the use of gross-out gags in Office Race, such as the vomiting during the "beer mile" scenes? Does this type of humor add to or detract from your enjoyment of the film?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : September 4, 2023
- Cast : Joel McHale , Kelsey Grammer , Alyson Hannigan , JB Smoove
- Director : Jared Lapidus
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Above Average
- Genre : Comedy
- Run time : 91 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : March 11, 2024
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