Get Hard the story about James (Ferrell) who is wrongfully convicted of attempted fraud, and money embezzlement, is sentenced to ten years in San Quentin’s maximum security prison, giving the down on his luck banker 30 days to take care of his personal affairs. The terrified James then enlists in Darnell (Hart) a local car-wash owner whose looks are more perceiving, and accepts the offer to prep James for his prison sentence or as he puts it “Incarceration expert.” Why Darnell? because he must of went to prison? because he’s black? Right?

Right.

When scanning the parameters of a film that’s name could be taken as a sexual innuendo (which about halfway through, that’s exactly, for batein, what happens.) I did laugh, a few times..but at what expense? the hard R rated comedy steps over the boundaries a little bit, and in the process offends more than the occasional minority, blacks specifically. I started keeping a running tally of how many crude, albeit, racial slurs and offensive comments were made about said minorities. Final tally? I lost count.

There is ACTUALLY a scene that involves our James trying to befriend a white supremacist group called “White Alliance” so he can further be protected in prison (sigh) just when you think comedy could find better means of forcing a chuckle or two, the filmmakers (headed by first time director, Etan Cohen) use diverted tactics to subdue laughter, and sometimes it does work, but mostly it just feels dated.

I have always defended Kevin Hart, he is a tremendously talented comic working today, the fact of the matter…he is best left unscripted. When you see Hart doing his thing in his stand-up specials, it’s like a combination of Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy. Yet, when you sludge him in between a screwball screenplay with the likes of: Ride Along, About Last Night, and The Wedding Ringer – there is nothing to appreciate about his craft. Get Hard is better than those movies, but only because he got to be the funny man I knew he was, even if it was for a brief interaction or two.

There is a scene where James turns his tennis court into a prison yard simulation, and Darnell takes it about himself to portray three gangs vying to claim James as their own. Hart briefly switches in and out of characters almost instantly while maneuvering around Ferrell, who I’m sure was just kept guessing that entire scene (hence the misconception on his face.)  One of the more appropriate scenes in the film, but yet the underlying tone of it all, was a mixture of racism, and bawdy.

Ferrell is a consistent performer equally, and the match-make in heaven of these two comedic powerhouses is something that should have been (on paper) a slam dunk. This film is serviceable to an extent and Get Hard is funny, but not enough. Another problem could be the count down that shows up periodically throughout the picture, telling us exactly how long we have till James is going to prison. This was kind of like a cue to help the editor transition from one sketch to the next.

Thankfully Hart and Ferrell are a winning team, Harts manic can become tiresome after while, and Ferrell can keep things in check rather casually. He’s basically playing another man child, but the growing friendship between Darnell, and James allows him to evolve…very little. There also is a sub-plot (useless) about who set James up. It will only take you from watching the initial trailer to identify the culprits.

All I have to say is that two of the most talented comedians on the planet got together and made a raunchy R rated comedy? and I’m not giving it a higher grade? it really shouldn’t be this hard. Grade: B-