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The Brothers Grimsby (2016), R, ★1/2

Mark Strong and Sacha Baron Cohen.
Let's set-up the movie in terms of execution for the story. We have a guy who is an agent in MI6 who has a brother who is loving but is careless. It's a fantastic premise for that type of spy comedy. BUT...if it's for a movie that stars Sacha Baron Cohen...all logic and solid storytelling goes out the window. Ever since he solidified himself as a lead role in Borat, we were surprised on how funny and clever that comedy was. I really liked his first effort but I cannot get myself to watch it multiple times. But, we had the awful Bruno and the decent The Dictator and is inconsistent with his comedies. He's back into that category of crass filth that made me laugh big time two to three times and I felt guilty, but in between, the movie is boring.

Nobby Butcher (Sacha Baron Cohen) is married to his wife, Dawn (Rebel Wilson) who have a large family of 11 children and one grandchild, living in a poor town of Grimsby, full of degenerate, lowlives and drunk people. Nobby keeps a room for his brother, whom he has been separated from for 28 years. His brother, Sebastian (Mark Strong), is on a mission in which Jodie (Isla Fisher) is his eyes and ears during the mission. He kills all of the villains until the last one who reveals his boss, Rhonda George (Penelope Cruz), in which he eventually dies.

Nobby is at a pub who is doing awkwardly dumb things (specifically with fireworks) and he has nicked a ticket at a "posh event" in which one of his cousins has discovered Sebastian. When Nobby reunites with Sebastian, he gives him a hug but causes Sebastian to shoot the wrong target. As some people think he has gone rogue against his ally, they go after Sebastian and Nobby.

Nobby and Sebastian go back to the family home, all of whom is delighted to meet him. The kids show Sebastian a wall of photos in which he Nobby kept as a child. In a flashback, Nobby abandoned Sebastian as they were both set to be adopted which causes him to resent his brother. One of the townspeople gives his identity away which causes the assassins to shoot a toxic dart at Sebastian's testicles and Nobby and Sebastian runs away. Nobby has the task to well...save Sebastian's life...by...use your imagination. 
Yay! Sacha is back! Eh....
This is gross desperation for Sacha Baron Cohen to demonstrate what he does best and a few land but many miss because it is not integral to the mission and to the storyline that much. It just capitalizes the R rating and pushes the envelope and with all those crass jokes to a whole another level. I will admit there was a joke that involves an elephant, maybe two, that I cannot have the audacity to type on this review but I laughed so hard and I turned away because it was one of the craziest and grossest sequences I have ever seen. I asked myself, "How did this get an R rating?" But, this movie goes backwards big time in terms of comedy and storyline. It does not propel me to crave for another Sacha Baron Cohen comedy.

Cohen is fine but is starting to bore me as a lead. He's very good in supporting roles such as Hugo, Sweeney Todd and Talladega Nights. He needs to dial down and find another character, but fully-rounded. Mostly, the one star rating is for Mark Strong because he is good in a straight role being a fantastic spy but is involved in a raunchy situation after another. He is perfectly fine. The rest of the cast is underwhelming as most of the movie focuses on both of the brothers and the mission is not that satisfying.

Why did I give an extra half a star? Because, I laughed with guilt in three scenes but that's not enough even remotely. It's homophobic, twisted and pedophiliac plus it involves a joke with a kid having AIDS. What the hell? But, he lost his mojo with this movie now because he has to fundamentally find a screenplay that exemplifies Cohen's talent as an actor but in a supporting role. All I have to say, let's move on. It's not as apocalyptic as Bruno but I am emotionally detached from Sacha Baron Cohen's comedy now.

*1/2



Here's the now infamous Jimmy Kimmel clip, though:

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