Meet Bill [DVD] [2008] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Meet Bill is the story of Bill (played by Aaron Eckhart), a man who is quickly realizing that his wife, weight, job and life are all out of control. His wife is cheating, his stomach is growing, his job is pointless, and he wants more out of life than what he has.

During a random encounter, Bill meets high school student known only as The Kid (played by Logan Lerman), and it is here that the story takes off.

Meet Bill starts off with a bang. We are instantly pulled into the life of Bill, can sympathize with him, and want the best for him. The movie shows great potential for the first 45 minutes as we meet the other cast of characters in Bill's life. We can sympathize with Bill, and ultimately feel good about cheering him on.

But then, somewhere halfway through this film, it unravels. Scenes start to feel pointless. The story meanders, and feels like the writers knew where it would take off, but not how it should land. The pacing becomes a slow, dull crawl. And at the end of the movie, in the last five minutes,
Bill completely falls out of character and decides to shirk everything the movie has built up to, and become a wandering nomad.

The actors do an amazing job with what they are given to work with, and I cannot fault any of them. Each actor threads the film together with great depth. Unfortunately the script doesn't give them much to hold together.

And ultimately, I felt empty as the credits rolled.

In `Meet Bill' Aaron Eckhart once again expands his career repertoire with a role we're accustomed to seeing Steve Carell play. As partial as I am to both actors, it's refreshing to see him play the fumbling underdog, closer to Carell's performance in `Dan in Real Life'. Too bad this sitcom worthy movie has little else to commend it. There are original, quirky elements, but the screwball execution is spotty for laughs and disjointed in parts.

Bill is in a middle-aged rut. Dependent on his wife Jess (Elizabeth Banks), he works as head of human relations at his father-in-law's bank. Jess looks healthy. She wears workout apparel and continually tries to prod Bill to adhere to his doctor's diet, one that eschews his coveted donut fix. At work he is like a dog on a leash. Not thrilled to begin with working under his father-in-law, Bill hates it when he's proposed to join their mentor program. He meets "the kid" (Logan Lerman) he's supposed to mentor in the bathroom, where Bill helps him hide the marijuana he flushes down the toilet before his school liaison catches him. Next, not only does he have to mentor "the kid," he has to go duck hunting with his in-laws and their sponsored teens. Being an animal lover, he becomes an awful shot, but provides some of the best laughs of the movie.

Getting chubby, the hubby suspects Jess is having an affair. Planting a camera beneath a translucent hat, he catches her in adultery with a local news reporter, Chip Johnson (Timothy Olyphant). Things go from bad to worse as Bill goes after Chip and the media gets a hold of the infidelity caught on tape. With nowhere to live, Bill turns to his gay brother, Sargeant (Craig Bierko*), a sporting goods store owner, and his partner Paul (Reed Diamond) to stay. A fitness buff, Paul tries to turn Bill's life around.

Bill wants to stay in his marriage while getting out of the bank. Jess hates the surveillance and doesn't say it, but Bill's slob appearance is indicative of his care for her as well. Forming a friendship "the kid" warms up to Bill before he can reciprocate. His friend and love interest, Lucy (Jessica Alba) seems much more mature than he, but she is a great resource for Bill. Both of them take an interest in getting Bill and Jess back together.

Although I don't condone illegal drug use, I have to admit it's a clever twist to have the mentor corrupted by his young apprentice. Eckhart plays a stoner scene like a pro as he and "the kid" go rock climbing in his brother's sports' store, easily one of the funniest scenes in the movie.

For all the oddball factors, 'Meet Bill' won't ruin your evening, but it won't provide the most compelling comedy, either.

(If 'Meet Bill' and 'The Forty Year Old Virgin' are any indication, most women don't favor men's body hair. So much for the old days when a hairy chest seemed to be coveted.)

A J.P.'s Pan 2.5 *'s= Mediocre-Good/Decent

(*uncredited according to IMDb)

Aaron Eckhart has been one of my favorite actors for years, he continually flies under the mainstream radar but makes every movie he is in, believable.

The first time directors (Bernie/Melissa) tackled a familiar topic in the mid-life crisis film, but since they had AE to carry it, everything came across beautifully. AE plays our married man Bill, as he unhappily fills an undeserved in-law position at a bank. His wife is played by Liz Banks, who I love from Scrubs, that helps lead an amazing supporting cast, including Timothy Olyphant (Deadwood), Jessica Alba, and Logan Lerman (3:10 to Yuma).

The story centers on Bill going through the motions of discovering marital infidelity, becoming a mentor for a smarter than his age school kid, while coming to terms with finding himself through some unorthodox avenues. Jessica Alba finally found a role that she was obviously relaxed with. Her entire presence was believable and she didn't have to wear a swimsuit, a tight blue suit or act scared - to do it. She does not play the love-interest as advertised, she just fills a role of helping out a new friend. I hope she does more films like this. Tim Olyphant has proven himself repeatedly, and I think even these slightly corny roles don't diminish his ability to be the hated character, yet still fun to watch.

This film will not appeal to the teens or older crowds, but probably along the same customer lines as Thank You for Smoking, another great Eckhart film. Good for a low-key movie night for that guy that might be in that similar "mid-life" stage. The laugh out loud moments and open ending make for a believable self-discovery film.

On this DVD release - the deleted scenes were all they included. No other ANYTHING to speak of, except for lots of additional First Look Studio previews, was disappointed on that.