About 20 minutes into “The Brothers Solomon,” as the titular brothers worry about nudie mags at a “liquid repository,” I wearily began to question the need for this movie’s existence. Sure, pregnancy mixed with social ineptitude can make for decent entertainment (see “Knocked Up”), but really, who the hell wants to see this movie? It’s not going to make headlines, change lives or even make a dollar —— few people are going to see it, and the best chance “Solomon” has in even finding an audience is through Comedy Central or OnDemand reruns.
- Trevor Campbell
- Reminiscent of a freshman bumping into a junior during Welcome Week. (COURTESY OF TRISTAR)
If it’s convenient.
In short, this is a very mediocre, sometimes amusing farce that someone might accidentally see.
The story: Edward Solomon (Lee Majors, “The Six Million Dollar Man”) is in a coma, and according to his doctor, Edward requested that he be able to see a grandchild before he dies. Enter his sons, John (Will Arnett, forever Gob of “Arrested Development”) and Dean (Will Forte, “SNL”), so anxious and na’ve in wanting to fulfill their dying pa’s wish they must impregnate someone as soon as possible.
Or as the two socially stunted brothers say, “Make a baby for Dad!” Home-schooled, slightly slow and always in agreement, John and Dean are a fine pair of boobs. But thanks to their completely unaware and oblivious lifestyles, they march on despite consistent difficulty. For 90 minutes we watch the quest fail and succeed, much like the humor, and when “Solomon” works, it’s actually not that bad.
When you think they’re grabbing champagne to celebrate, Dean is actually grabbing his air horn. When John goes on a first date in hopes of pregnancy, he assumes that by paying taxes and proposing immediately, he can copulate. And when John and Dean want to protect their newborn baby, they acquire a mini vault and smash bottles on it to prove how secure the child will be inside. Oh, the wonders of home-schooling and bad behavior free of guilt and consequence.
What feels like a parody of bad male parenting flicks (“3 Men and a Baby” or “Look Who’s Talking”) is actually a mild-mannered comedy about boneheads making babies trailing in the wake of “Knocked Up’s” super success.