TMC
06-16-2022, 03:30 AM
https://variety.com/2022/tv/reviews/gods-favorite-idiot-netflix-1235295088/
The streamer seems to be disappointed in the husband-and-wife team's new comedy since it was released Wednesday with little promotion and without critics receiving episodes in advance. As Daniel D'Addario points out, while McCarthy has shined in films like Bridesmaids, Spy and Can You Ever Forgive Me?, "the performer has made an escalatingly disastrous series of movies directed by her husband Ben Falcone, including The Boss, Life of the Party, and Superintelligence. Falcone and McCarthy’s creative partnership makes a crystalline case for allowing someone from outside the family into the making of art; together, their work is slackly paced and meagerly plotted. God’s Favorite Idiot, created by Falcone (with both spouses credited as executive producers), is a low point, and, somehow, a shock. Even after years worth of Falcone-led content, one still believes there are better ways McCarthy could be put to use onscreen, that she might find her way to collaborators who see her as an actor and not just a pratfall machine."
ALSO:
God's Favorite Idiot is one of the worst shows of the year, and it's only June (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/television/article-gods-favorite-idiot-gets-everything-wrong/): "Here, she’s wasted in what is a muddled, lazy heap of stinking clichés," says John Doyle of Melissa McCarthy, adding: "Everything about this series is jaw-droppingly slack and unambitious, given the talent involved. The material aimed at satirizing office life for Clark and Amily is tired, the material aiming to poke fun at religious fervour is spiritless. Occasionally, McCarthy delivers a line meant to land at least a smile."
Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy are great to watch (https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/jun/15/gods-favorite-idiot-review-melissa-mccarthy-has-a-divine-gift-for-lifting-the-spirits): "The central relationship between their alter egos gives the whole thing enough charm, warmth and heart to get by," says Lucy Mangan. "It’s unclear as yet whether Netflix agrees. Sixteen episodes were originally commissioned to be filmed all at once, but shooting wrapped after eight. Temporarily, we are told, but there has been no word on the second batch yet. Overall, it would be nice to see them, but I suppose it’s a marker of sorts that I suspect no one will much mind either way."
Falcone has given McCarthy carte blanche to do her schtick of being loud, boorish and generally unbearable, in the mistaken belief that everything she says or does is hilarious (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/gods-favorite-idiot-review-melissa-mccarthy-manages-ruin-husbands/)
Yanic Truesdale and Melissa McCarthy have a Gilmore Girls reunion on God's Favorite Idiot, but his character is the total opposite of Michel (https://www.tvinsider.com/1048266/gods-favorite-idiot-yanic-truesdale-chamuel-melissa-mccarthy-gilmore-girls/)
Leslie Bibb drew inspiration for playing Satan from Gene Hackman's performance as Lex Luthor in Superman (https://www.cnet.com/culture/entertainment/gene-hackman-inspired-leslie-bibbs-satan-in-gods-favorite-idiot/)
Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy on coming up with God's Favorite Idiot (https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-features/melissa-mccarthy-ben-falcone-gods-favorite-idiot-1235156480/): "I’ve been fascinated with theology for a long time," says Falcone. "I actually wrote a novel about it in my 20s, with the same name. Melissa is fascinated by the idea of, if somebody was a messenger of God, how would they be received, and how would the messenger themselves react? Especially if it’s someone who’s not the quickest on the uptake. So that was where the idea was born, and then probably two years ago we sketched out a version of it — Melissa suggested it take place at an IT company —and then we pitched it to Netflix." McCarthy adds: "We know an idea is worth pursuing when we can’t stop talking to each other about it. And lately, I’m feeling like comedy’s little slice of the pie keeps getting smaller and smaller. I can’t wrap my head around it because, man, do we need to laugh now more than ever."
The streamer seems to be disappointed in the husband-and-wife team's new comedy since it was released Wednesday with little promotion and without critics receiving episodes in advance. As Daniel D'Addario points out, while McCarthy has shined in films like Bridesmaids, Spy and Can You Ever Forgive Me?, "the performer has made an escalatingly disastrous series of movies directed by her husband Ben Falcone, including The Boss, Life of the Party, and Superintelligence. Falcone and McCarthy’s creative partnership makes a crystalline case for allowing someone from outside the family into the making of art; together, their work is slackly paced and meagerly plotted. God’s Favorite Idiot, created by Falcone (with both spouses credited as executive producers), is a low point, and, somehow, a shock. Even after years worth of Falcone-led content, one still believes there are better ways McCarthy could be put to use onscreen, that she might find her way to collaborators who see her as an actor and not just a pratfall machine."
ALSO:
God's Favorite Idiot is one of the worst shows of the year, and it's only June (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/television/article-gods-favorite-idiot-gets-everything-wrong/): "Here, she’s wasted in what is a muddled, lazy heap of stinking clichés," says John Doyle of Melissa McCarthy, adding: "Everything about this series is jaw-droppingly slack and unambitious, given the talent involved. The material aimed at satirizing office life for Clark and Amily is tired, the material aiming to poke fun at religious fervour is spiritless. Occasionally, McCarthy delivers a line meant to land at least a smile."
Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy are great to watch (https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/jun/15/gods-favorite-idiot-review-melissa-mccarthy-has-a-divine-gift-for-lifting-the-spirits): "The central relationship between their alter egos gives the whole thing enough charm, warmth and heart to get by," says Lucy Mangan. "It’s unclear as yet whether Netflix agrees. Sixteen episodes were originally commissioned to be filmed all at once, but shooting wrapped after eight. Temporarily, we are told, but there has been no word on the second batch yet. Overall, it would be nice to see them, but I suppose it’s a marker of sorts that I suspect no one will much mind either way."
Falcone has given McCarthy carte blanche to do her schtick of being loud, boorish and generally unbearable, in the mistaken belief that everything she says or does is hilarious (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/gods-favorite-idiot-review-melissa-mccarthy-manages-ruin-husbands/)
Yanic Truesdale and Melissa McCarthy have a Gilmore Girls reunion on God's Favorite Idiot, but his character is the total opposite of Michel (https://www.tvinsider.com/1048266/gods-favorite-idiot-yanic-truesdale-chamuel-melissa-mccarthy-gilmore-girls/)
Leslie Bibb drew inspiration for playing Satan from Gene Hackman's performance as Lex Luthor in Superman (https://www.cnet.com/culture/entertainment/gene-hackman-inspired-leslie-bibbs-satan-in-gods-favorite-idiot/)
Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy on coming up with God's Favorite Idiot (https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-features/melissa-mccarthy-ben-falcone-gods-favorite-idiot-1235156480/): "I’ve been fascinated with theology for a long time," says Falcone. "I actually wrote a novel about it in my 20s, with the same name. Melissa is fascinated by the idea of, if somebody was a messenger of God, how would they be received, and how would the messenger themselves react? Especially if it’s someone who’s not the quickest on the uptake. So that was where the idea was born, and then probably two years ago we sketched out a version of it — Melissa suggested it take place at an IT company —and then we pitched it to Netflix." McCarthy adds: "We know an idea is worth pursuing when we can’t stop talking to each other about it. And lately, I’m feeling like comedy’s little slice of the pie keeps getting smaller and smaller. I can’t wrap my head around it because, man, do we need to laugh now more than ever."