There should be a million dollar reward paid to the first person to lay hands on the script Will Ferrell turned down. Ferrell produces and stars as a cracker stockbroker, framed for security fraud, who hires a Lower South Central car washer (Kevin Hart) to teach him how to survive in prison. In his role as teacher, Hart is given free reign to reinforce a checklist of stereotypical behavior. With the wobbly premise firmly in place, writer (Tropic Thunder, Men In Black 3) and first-time director Etan Cohen diagrams an obstacle course in the form of a series of skits: Ferrell learns how to trash-talk, survive a simulated riot, fellate fellow cons, etc. As for the level of wit, a reference to Balzac exists solely to give a character the opportunity to say, “ball sack.” Unthinkable by any standards. With Craig Nelson, Alison Brie, an obligatory unveiling of Ferrell’s backside, and what’s become a staple in most contemporary male buddy films, a prosthetic “Diggler.” (2015) — Scott Marks
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