MovieChat Forums > Middle Men (2010) Discussion > Luke Wilson hurt this movie

Luke Wilson hurt this movie

posted 13 years ago by Cobb05
15 replies | jump to latest

I'm a fan of George Gallo. I think he's a very underrated writer. The movie is good, but I think Luke Wilson was miscast. It needed someone who wasn't so cornball. When you see Luke Wilson, you automaticly think of him as the nice guy, cornball, not really confrontational kind of guy. If Luke's character was played by someone who was more of a stronger guy, you'd buy it more. If this was a comedy, where the gangsters are after Luke and he is like "What's going on here?" it would make sense to cast him. But as a dramatic lead, he sticks out like a sore thumb. I just don't buy Luke Wilson as a guy who can be cool and solve problems. For some reason I see Collin Ferrell in this role. Or even Edward Norton. I think the rest of the cast is great. Luke just doesn't work for me.

[–] brendanfoy 12 years ago

Though Edward Norton would have been a great choice because he could have better represented the change from cornball family man to hornball porno king, I think Wilson did a fine job and was not miscast.

Remember, this character is not a gangster and never meant to be tough. I suppose the movie could have benefited from a Ray Liotta type who looks innocent but can be menacing when needed, but I don't think the character as written was ever supposed to be a convincing tough guy. If anything, Caan might have been the one miscast as the sleazeball lawyer because he is just too tough.

I just saw this movie and thought it was surprsingly good with some very funny moments. It is a comedy with dramatic elements, Giovanni Ribisi was hilarious and I wish they kept the focus on him and his friend for the whole film because they kind of faded away towards the end.