Dirty Grandpa
Dirty Grandpa | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Dan Mazer |
Written by | John M. Phillips |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Eric Alan Edwards |
Edited by | Anne McCabe |
Music by | Michael Andrews |
Distributed by | Lionsgate |
Release date |
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Running time | 102 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $11.5-25 million[2][3] |
Box office | $105.2 million[2] |
Dirty Grandpa is a 2016 American comedy film about a lawyer who drives his grandfather to Florida during spring break. The film was directed by Dan Mazer and written by John Phillips. It stars Robert De Niro, Zac Efron, Aubrey Plaza, and Zoey Deutch.
Filming began on January 19, 2015 in Atlanta and ended on May 9. Dirty Grandpa was theatrically released on January 22, 2016 by Lionsgate. It grossed $105.2 million against a production budget of $25 million, but it was met with strongly negative critical reception, and several critics called it the worst films they had ever seen.
Plot
Jason Kelly is a lawyer who works for his father. Jason's grandmother dies, and after the funeral, his Army veteran grandfather, Dick, asks Jason to drive him to Boca Raton, Florida. Jason is getting married to his controlling fiancée, Meredith, in one week, but decides to take his grandfather anyway.
On the way there, the two meet Jason's old photography classmate, Shadia, along with her friends Lenore and Bradley. Dick and Lenore are instantly attracted to each other. Dick tells the girls that he is a professor and that Jason is a photographer. They all go their separate ways, but Dick convinces Jason that they should meet the girls at Daytona Beach, Florida, because Dick wants to have sex with Lenore. The two go to a golf course, where Dick flirts with two women.
At Daytona Beach, they meet up with the girls and the girls' friends, Cody and Brah, with whom they compete in beer chugging. That night, a drunk Jason, wearing nothing but a Hornet fanny pack, parties and smokes crack cocaine that he gets from a drug dealer named Pam. He steals a motorcycle and wakes up the next day on the beach. During an awkward FaceTime with Meredith, a boy grabs the fanny pack and takes it off; his father suspects Jason of being a pervert and calls the police, who promptly arrest Jason. Dick bails him out, and the two visit Dick's old Army friend Stinky in a nursing home. They meet the girls again and enter a flexing contest with Cody and Brah; when they lose, Dick alters a T-shirt cannon to fire a beer can at the winning duo, hospitalizing them. With Cody and Brah in the hospital, Jason and Dick take their hotel room. After Dick reveals to Jason that he was a member of the Special Forces, the two go to a nightclub with the girls. Dick gets into a fight with some men after they bully Bradley for his homosexuality. The next day, Jason goes to a protest with Shadia and she tells him that she is leaving soon and going to live on a ship for a year.
That night, Jason plans on telling Shadia who he really is, but before he can, Cody does an online search on him and tells Shadia that Jason is already engaged. Jason then gets caught with drugs and is thrown into jail again. The next day, Dick bails him out and tells Jason that his real reason for the trip was to convince Jason not to go through with the wedding. Jason leaves Dick and drives back home.
During his wedding rehearsal, Dick hacks into the computer system, revealing embarrassing photos of Jason during the party. Jason says that he cannot marry Meredith, who reveals that she had an affair. He, Dick, and Pam use Pam's ice cream truck to catch up with the bus that Shadia is on as she is leaving. Jason and Shadia kiss, and he gets on the bus with her. Dick goes to his house in Boca Raton and finds Lenore there waiting for him, and they have sex. Dick and Lenore get married and have a baby boy, and Jason and Shadia are named the godparents.
Cast
- Robert De Niro as Richard "Dick" Kelly, Jason's grandfather[4]
- Zac Efron as Jason Kelly[4]
- Aubrey Plaza as Lenore, Shadia's best friend[5]
- Zoey Deutch as Shadia[4]
- Julianne Hough as Meredith Goldstein, Jason's fiancée[6][7]
- Dermot Mulroney as David Kelly, Jason's father and Dick's son[5][7]
- Jason Mantzoukas as Pam
- Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Bradley, Shadia and Lenore's effeminate gay male friend
- Jake Picking as Cody
- Michael Hudson as Brah
- Adam Pally as Nick[8]
- Henry Zebrowski as Officer Gary Reiter
- Mo Collins as Officer Jean Finch
- Danny Glover as Stinky
- Brandon Mychal Smith as Tyrone
Production
The film's script was featured in the 2011 edition of the Black List, an annual listings of well received but unproduced scripts in circulation.[9][10] Prior to De Niro's casting, Jeff Bridges and Michael Douglas were considered for the starring role.[11][12]
De Niro's casting along with that of Zac Efron was confirmed September 2014.[13] Zoey Deutch joined as the female lead,[4] followed that January by the casting of Adam Pally and Aubrey Plaza.[8][5] Plaza said that she was inspired by the role because it was different from the characters she normally played, and was also inspired by the fact that the role let her engage in physical comedy.[14]
Filming
Principal photography began in Atlanta, Georgia on January 5, 2015.[15][16] The cast, including Julianne Hough, was spotted filming in Atlanta on January 12.[6] On January 14 and 16, Efron, De Niro, Plaza, and Deutch were spotted filming in Marietta, Georgia.[17] On January 20, De Niro, Efron, Mantzoukas, and Mulroney were filming in an ice cream truck.[18][19] On February 4, filming took place in McDonough.[20] On February 4, De Niro and Efron were spotted filming.[21] On February 9–10, filming took place at The Grand Atrium at 200 Peachtree in Atlanta.[22] Preliminary shooting of the film ended on February 13, 2015, in Hampton, Georgia.[20][23]
After filming officially ended, it was again scheduled to resume from April 27 to May 5, with the cast and crew filming spring break scenes on Tybee Island, Georgia.[24] On April 27, filming resumed, with Efron preparing for his scenes.[25] Production officially ended on May 9, 2015.[26]
Release
On October 29, 2015, Lionsgate released the film's first poster and trailer.[7] The first poster was a parody of the poster for Mike Nichols' 1967 film The Graduate.
The film was initially set for a Christmas 2015 release, but was pushed to an August 16, 2016 date.[27][4] It was then brought up to February 26, 2016, before finally being moved to January 22, 2016.[5][28]
Reception
Box office
Dirty Grandpa grossed $35.5 million in the United States and Canada and $69.6 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $105.2 million, against a production budget of $11.5-25 million.[2][3]
The film was released in North America on January 22, 2016, alongside The 5th Wave and The Boy, and was projected to gross $10–13 million from 2,912 theaters in its opening weekend.[29] The film made $4.3 million on its first day and went on to debut to $11.1 million, finishing 4th at the box office.[30]
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 11% based on 133 reviews and an average rating of 2.76/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Like a Werther's Original dropped down a sewer drain, Dirty Grandpa represents the careless fumbling of a classic talent that once brought pleasure to millions."[31] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 21 out of 100 based on 27 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[32] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.[33]
Dirty Grandpa received negative reviews for its gross-out and shock humor that was also considered as sexist,[34] homophobic and racist.[35] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter said that even though humor is subjective "It can be definitively stated that Dirty Grandpa is utterly unfunny." Scheck is especially critical of the uneven tone of the film, and says it "doesn't even have the courage of its anarchic convictions, frequently abandoning its tasteless humor to indulge in sentimental scenes".[36] Nick Schager of Variety wrote: "This contemptible fiasco is not only comfortable courting laughs through ugly mockery of minorities, but also doesn’t even have the courage of its own crass-as-I-wannabe convictions."[37] Mike Ryan of Uproxx said: "Dirty Grandpa is the worst movie I’ve ever seen in a movie theater. Burn it."[38] He later also picked it as the worst film he had both reviewed[39] and seen.[40] Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood said: "[...] Dirty Grandpa, is not just the worst movie [De Niro] has ever been in, but it may be the worst movie anyone has ever been in."[41] Glenn McDonald of Indy Week said: "The awful, ugly Dirty Grandpa is the comedy equivalent of torture porn [...] In fact, in the dizzying moments after being bludgeoned by this miserable specimen, I was convinced it's among the worst movies ever made."[42] Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film zero stars, and wrote: "If Dirty Grandpa isn't the worst movie of 2016, I have some serious cinematic torture in my near future."[43]
Mark Kermode, on his BBC Radio 5 Live show, said, "after Dirty Grandpa I did feel genuinely unclean, I wanted to go and have a shower, because it's just so revolting. Somewhere in hell there is a multiplex playing this on a double bill, with Movie 43 and Entourage."[44] He would later go on to brand it his least favorite film of 2016.[45] Glenn Kelly of RogerEbert.com said: "The actor Bela Lugosi appeared in some landmark, perhaps even great, films at the beginning of his Hollywood career in the 1930s. [...] Lugosi’s final film was 1959’s “Plan 9 From Outer Space,” frequently cited as the worst film ever made. The cinematic landmarks of De Niro’s career include films such as Coppola’s “The Godfather, Part II” and Scorsese’s “Raging Bull.” He has been featured in a good number of very bad films in the years since. But this? This might just be his own “Plan 9.”"[46]
Jesse Hassenger of The A.V. Club gave the a grade C- and called the film tired, was critical of the writing, and direction. Hassenger was positive about Plaza's performance and said "she and De Niro appear ready to run away together into a better movie." He concludes "There’s a certain perverse brilliance [...] to a movie that creates a longing for a foulmouthed Aubrey Plaza/Robert De Niro romcom."[47] Kate Taylor of The Globe and Mail gave the film 2 out of 4 and wrote: "It’s the direction, not the script, that really kills the picture, as Mazer limps along from the chugging contest to the half-naked conga line to the car chase without ever raising the laughs he needs from the comic set pieces or the tension he needs from the dramatic developments." Taylor says the film is not sweet enough, or raunchy enough, and "seems unlikely to satisfy any audience" and concludes that De Niro's former fans will be left pleading for better.[48] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 2 out of 5, and said it offered "Some laughs – and some unintentional eeeuuuwwws." Bradshaw wrote: "This grossout comedy takes De Niro fans into a new emotional phase that I can only call “post-despair”. We are past being astonished and horrified. [...] We are just numbly resigned to the great man continuing to do things like this".[49]
Awards
At the 37th Golden Raspberry Awards, it received five nominations, for Worst Picture, Worst Actor (De Niro), Worst Supporting Actress (Julianne Hough and Aubrey Plaza, respectively) and Worst Screenplay, but did not win in any category.
Award | Category | Subject | Result |
---|---|---|---|
Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Picture | Bill Block | Nominated |
Michael Simkin | Nominated | ||
Jason Barrett | Nominated | ||
Barry Josephson | Nominated | ||
Worst Actor | Robert De Niro | Nominated | |
Worst Supporting Actress | Julianne Hough | Nominated | |
Aubrey Plaza | Nominated | ||
Worst Screenplay | John M. Phillips | Nominated |
Home media
Dirty Grandpa received a DVD and Blu-ray release on May 17, 2016. The Blu-ray edition featured an unrated version of the film, including an audio commentary, a making-of, a gag reel, and three featurettes.[50] It was released on 4K UHD Blu-Ray on June 12, 2018.[51]
References
- ^ "DIRTY GRANDPA (15)". British Board of Film Classification. December 4, 2015. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- ^ a b c "Dirty Grandpa (2016)". The Numbers. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
- ^ a b FilmL.A. (May 2017). "2016 Feature Film Study" (PDF). FilmL.A. Feature Film Study. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Yamato, Jen (December 9, 2014). "Zoey Deutch Joins Zac Efron, Robert De Niro In 'Dirty Grandpa'". Deadline. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Yamanto, Jen. "Aubrey Plaza Joins Zac Efron, Robert De Niro In 'Dirty Grandpa'". Deadline. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
- ^ a b Enriquez, Justin (January 13, 2015). "He's so pretty in pink! Zac Efron drives around in a pastel convertible Mini Cooper while on set of Dirty Grandpa". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
- ^ a b c Bryant, Jacob (October 29, 2015). "Watch: Zac Efron, Robert De Niro Go on Spring Break in 'Dirty Grandpa' Trailer". Variety. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
- ^ a b Yamato, Jen (January 22, 2015). "Adam Pally Joins Efron-De Niro Road Tripper 'Dirty Grandpa'". Deadline. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
- ^ Marshall, Rick. "Watch Zac Efron and Robert DeNiro take on spring break in the Dirty Grandpa trailer". Digital Trends. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ "The Black List 2011: Screenplay Roster". Deadline. December 12, 2011.
- ^ Claude Brodesser-Akner (March 27, 2012). "Who Would You Cast for Dirty Grandpa: Jeff Bridges or Michael Douglas?". Vulture.com. NY Mag.
- ^ Puchiko, Kristy. "Jeff Bridges And Michael Douglas Up For Comedy Dirty Grandpa". Cinemablend. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ Ford, Rebecca (September 4, 2014). "Zac Efron and Robert De Niro to Star in 'Dirty Grandpa' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
- ^ Chen, Jason. "Aubrey Plaza on 'Dirty Grandpa,' Twerking for Robert De Niro & That Permanent Death Stare". Yahoo. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
- ^ ?, Christine (December 9, 2014). "Spring Breakers needed in Atlanta for 'Dirty Grandpa', starring Robert De Niro & Zac Efron". On Location Vacations. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
{{cite web}}
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has numeric name (help) - ^ Brett, Jennifer (December 29, 2014). "Casting call: "Dirty Grandpa" with Zac Efron, Robert DeNiro needs extras". Casting Call. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
- ^ Waugh, Heather (January 16, 2015). "Zac Efron dons preppy outfit on the set of Dirty Grandpa as he's joined by scantily clad 'party girl' Aubrey Plaza". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
- ^ Freeth, Becky; Waugh, Heather (January 21, 2015). "That's one sweet ride! Zac Efron scrubs up in sharp grey suit as he gets to grips with an ice cream truck on Dirty Grandpa set". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
- ^ Ojomu, Nola; Freeth, Becky; Waugh, Heather (January 23, 2015). "Getting into the swing of it! Zac Efron shares a joke with co-star Robert De Niro... as he cuts a preppy figure for golf scene on Dirty Granpa set". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
- ^ a b "'Dirty Grandpa' filming in McDonough, GA this week". onlocationvacations.com. February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
- ^ McDonagh, Ross (February 5, 2015). "The Gooffather! Robert De Niro looks delighted with himself in a loud Hawaiian shirt on the set of Dirty Grandpa". Daily Mail. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
- ^ "'Dirty Grandpa' filming locations in Atlanta for Feb. 9 & 10". onlocationvacations.com. February 5, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
- ^ "'Dirty Grandpa', starring Zac Efron and Robert De Niro, last day of filming is taking place in Hampton, GA". onlocationvacations.com. February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
- ^ Savannah, Do (February 25, 2015). "'Spring break hotties' sought for Zac Efron film on Tybee Island". dosavannah.com. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
- ^ "Spontaneous push-ups". Lainey Gossip. Lainey Gossip. April 27, 2015. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
- ^ "Aubrey Plaza on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
- ^ Blake, Emily (September 9, 2014). "'Now You See Me 2' and 'Dirty Grandpa' get release dates". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
- ^ Busch, Anita (August 3, 2015). "'Criminal', 'Dirty Grandpa' & 'Mechanic: Resurrection' Get New Release Dates". Deadline. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
- ^ Brad Brevet (January 21, 2016). "'Revenant' Hunts #1 Amid Newcomers, '5th Wave', 'The Boy' and 'Dirty Grandpa'". Box Office Mojo.
- ^ Anita Busch (January 22, 2016). "Box Office Thursday Late Nights: 'Dirty Grandpa' Knocks In $660K, 'The Fifth Wave' Crashes In With $475K". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ "Dirty Grandpa (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "Dirty Grandpa Reviews". Metacritic.
- ^ "Cinemascore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on December 20, 2018.
- ^ "How DIRTY GRANDPA Made My Feminism Hurt: An Exposé". Sassy Mama in LA. January 22, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ Lang, Nico (February 10, 2016). "Some of Hollywood's Most Successful Comedies Have a "Hipster Homophobia" Problem". Slate Magazine. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ Frank Scheck (January 21, 2016). "'Dirty Grandpa': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ Schager, Nick (January 22, 2016). "Film Review: 'Dirty Grandpa'". Variety.
- ^ Murthi, Vikram (January 22, 2016). "Reviews: Is 'Dirty Grandpa' Robert DeNiro's Worst Movie Ever?". IndieWire. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ Kohn, Eric (June 19, 2017). "Critics Pick the Worst Movies They've Ever Reviewed". IndieWire. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
- ^ Ryan, Mike (January 21, 2016). "'Dirty Grandpa': The Most Important Movie Ever Made". Uproxx. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
- ^ Hammond, Pete (January 22, 2016). "'Dirty Grandpa' Review: The Worst Film Of Robert De Niro's Career (Or Maybe Anybody's)". Deadline. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn (January 22, 2016). "Movie review: The awful, ugly Dirty Grandpa is the comedy equivalent of torture porn". INDY Week. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
- ^ Richard Roeper (March 6, 2016). "'Dirty Grandpa': Robert De Niro deserves better than this dreck". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
- ^ kermodeandmayo. Dirty Grandpa reviewed by Mark Kermode. Kermode and Mayo's Film Review. Retrieved December 27, 2018 – via YouTube.
- ^ kermodeandmayo. The Ten Worst Films of 2016: Part Two. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
- ^ Kenny, Glenn. "Dirty Grandpa Movie Review & Film Summary (2016) | Roger Ebert". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
- ^ Jesse Hassenger (January 22, 2016). "Dirty Grandpa is so tired, it could use a nap". The A.V. Club.
- ^ KATE TAYLOR (January 22, 2016). "Dirty Grandpa: Robert De Niro and Zac Efron's misguided spring-break flick". The Globe and Mail.
- ^ Bradshaw, Peter (January 28, 2016). "Dirty Grandpa review – Robert De Niro plumbs the comedy depths". The Guardian.
- ^ "News: Dirty Grandpa (US - DVD R1 / BD RA)". DVDActive.com. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
- ^ "High Def Digest | Blu-ray and Games News and Reviews in High Definition". ultrahd.highdefdigest.com. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
External links
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- 2016 films
- 2010s sex comedy films
- 2010s road movies
- American films
- American road movies
- American sex comedy films
- Comedy road movies
- English-language films
- Films about dysfunctional families
- Films about old age
- Films about widowhood
- Films scored by Michael Andrews
- Films set in Atlanta
- Films set in Florida
- Films shot in Atlanta
- Films produced by Bill Block
- Lions Gate Entertainment films
- QED International films