Everything Must Go (2011)
TOMATOMETER
AUDIENCE SCORE
Critic Consensus: It may not improve on the Raymond Carver short story that inspired it, but Everything Must Go resists cliche and boasts a pair of magnetic performances from the perfectly cast Ferrell and Wallace.
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Cast
as Nick Porter
as Samantha
as Frank Garcia
as Kenny Loftus
as Gary
as Elliot
as Delilah
as Kitty
as Shopper
as Driver (Repo Guy)
as Fisherman
as Hipster
as Big Teenager
as Cop
as Lanky Teenager
as Bank Manager
as Jacket Buyer
as Girlfriend
as Samantha's Husband
as Blender Guy
as Liquor Store Clerk
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Critic Reviews for Everything Must Go
All Critics (131) | Top Critics (39) | Fresh (98) | Rotten (33) | DVD (2)
The unlikely combination of Will Ferrell and author Raymond Carver pays off beautifully.
I was not waiting for a punch line. I was not primed to laugh. I accepted Ferrell as Nick and, because of that, I was able to enjoy Everything Must Go on its own terms.
This isn't Ferrell's first dramatic role; he played seriocomic leading men in Stranger Than Fiction and Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda. But it's the first one that provides a glimpse at his possible future as a Bill Murray-style character actor.
Rush draws on the intense attachment we can feel for the mundane objects in our lives. For Nick, these things are talismans from a past that promised a lot more than it delivered.
In the end, Everything Must Go is something of a consciously static study in sadness, both well-made and wearying.
Taking stock and letting go -- of superfluous things, of worn-out love -- is a strong theme. But the progression of the script is like Nick's self-help program. We're familiar with the steps.
Audience Reviews for Everything Must Go
three stars
Super Reviewer
Anyone that's been reading my reviews for any length of time will be aware of my dislike for the humour of Will Ferrell. Don't get wrong, I've enjoyed some films of his: "Stranger Than Fiction" and "Elf" are a couple but for the most part his humour just doesn't work for me. Thankfully, this is Ferrell minus his funny bone and as he plays it straight, he delivers some impressive work. Nick Halsey (Will Ferrell) is fired from his sales job for his reliance on alcohol. When he returns home, he finds that his wife has left him, locked him out of the house and left all his belongings on the front lawn. He refuses to accept this though and decides to camp out in his chair and drink beer for days on end. As this is not legal, his cop friend and AA sponsor (Michael Peña) suggests that he pretends to be having a yard sale to buy him some time. Not before long, Nick starts to makes friends with the neighbours who help him sell his stuff. The problem with this film isn't Ferrell as I'd expected it to be. The problem with this film is that the material doesn't stretch far enough. It's based on the short story "Why Don't You Dance?" by Raymond Carver who was responsible for the serious of vignettes that made up Robert Altman's magnificent film "Short Cuts". Where Altman got it right though, was in keeping all the segments little tales of their own and never fleshed them out too far. This had been a short story for a reason; there just isn't enough material to cover the ground of a 90 minute feature - and it's shows. Despite a series of very good moments and the struggle and believable, emotional downfall of the protagonist, it has a series of lulls which just felt like padding. As a result the dramatic weight is lessened and your concentration begins to waver. That being said, there is still plenty to admire here and that mainly comes in the form of Ferrell, who flexes his acting chops in a more serious role than audiences will be used to. I'm not normally a fan of his brand of comedy but as a dramatic actor he's actually quite good. Unfortunately, for him though, the whole film rests on his shoulders; most of the other characters are secondary with Laura Dern, particularly wasted, in a thankless bit-part. However, the theme of a downward spiralling individual forced to confront his past - and his addictive problems - is reflected well, in the coveting of material objects and their relevance to a person as a whole. More of a tragi-comedy with the emphasis on the former. It has serious moments of lethargy but worth watching for it's metaphoric approach to life and to see Ferrell command the screen with depth, in a rare dramatic role.
Super Reviewer
An underwhelming, disappointing exercise in materialism and alcohol addiction concerning a recently fired salesman (Will Ferrell) who must deal with the fact that his wife has left him and locked him out of his house, leaving all of his belongings on his front yard. What could have been an intriguing film concerning excess and how one can find happiness in minimalism is wasted on a movie that does not desire to go any deeper than surface level cliches and a couple forced subplots that do not ring true. Ferrell, who has dabbled in dramedy before with "Stranger Than Fiction", is surprisingly dull and unconvincing, turning in arguably the worst performance of his career. The movie is not terrible, but it certainly is not good, as it starts out promising but soon becomes a tedious bore that is not interested into delving into anything remotely interesting besides the complete obvious.
Super Reviewer
Everything Must Go Quotes
| Nick Halsey: | Yesterday..what happend? I got fired from my job and my wife left me, so somehow calling you slipped my mind. |
| Nick Halsey: | Hi, are you in there? |
| Nick Halsey: | I'v given 16 years of my life to this company. |
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