Masterminds

Supposedly based on true events, Masterminds follows several dimwitted characters, including Zach Galifianakis’ David Ghantt and Kristen Wiig’s Kelly Campbell, as they plan and execute a brazen heist of an armored-car company. Filmmaker Jared Hess delivers a watchable yet awfully forgettable comedy that remains pitched at a level of perpetual mediocrity for the duration of its 94 minutes, and it’s clear, certainly, that the most obvious problem here is the degree to which the various actors transform their respective protagonists into cartoonish caricatures – which ensures that the movie, for the most part, feels like a comedy skit that’s been stretched out to feature length. It’s worth noting, regardless, that Hess has admittedly packed the proceedings with a number of laugh-out-loud funny jokes and gags, while the narrative’s escalating nature ensures that, if nothing else, the whole thing is fairly interesting from start to finish – which ultimately cements Mastermind’s place as a mindless bit of easy-to-watch entertainment.

**1/2 out of ****