Remember the times when Hollywood dished out fun buddy-comedies with happy endings with a side of wisdom akin to the kind of casual advice you might hear from an uncle who insists he’s not one to offer guidance? Ricky Stanicky tries to be just that and it’s no surprise given the film’s director, Peter Farrelly, is the mind behind titles like Dumb and Dumber, Me, Myself & Irene and There’s Something About Mary — cult classics which some of us grew up with. Unfortunately, Ricky Stanicky does not make the list. In fact, despite its quirky plot, the film misses the mark by a distance.
A quick flashback sequence shows how a trio of best friends manufacture an imaginary pal — the eponymous Ricky Stanicky — to be the fall guy for a mistake they made. Cut to the present, Dean (Zac Efron), JT (Andrew Santino), and Wes (Jermaine Fowler) have made good use of the Stanicky name to get out of many a situation to hang out with each other — ones that mostly involved family. When some of their family members begin to catch on, the trio must fashion Ricky in the flesh.
Enter Rod (John Cena) — a washed-up actor as their fabricated childhood friend. Unsurprisingly, what they consider a well-thought-out solution to their problem gradually snowballs out of control, eventually putting the trio’s personal and professional lives at stake.
Ricky Stanicky (English)
Unless you’re a fan of penis jokes, probably the only redeeming portion of the film will be Cena and his pro-wrestling “You can’t see me” quips. With a quarter century’s worth of lies that have accumulated in his life (ranging from him being a testicular cancer survivor and a humanitarian in Nairobi during an Ebola outbreak), to the trio’s family, Ricky is both an enigma and an open book. This gives Cena an open canvas to go about and he proceeds to have a field day within the confines of the script. The awkward humour that many enjoyed in his DC spinoff series Peacemaker (2022) takes centre stage here, and if you’re willing enough to suspend your disbelief, you’re most likely to enjoy the antics of Ricky.
Jermaine Fowler, Zac Efron and Andrew Santino in a scene from ‘Ricky Stanicky’ | Photo Credit: AP
Unfortunately, the film doesn’t have much to offer apart from its primary idea. After a period of time, you come to recognize its shortcomings. Even if you invest in this realm where decades of deceit are absolved in an instant, finding genuine enjoyment in its offerings becomes quite the task.
You know there isn’t much to expect from a film with a rabbi on ketamine leaving a child half-circumcised (Ricky saves the day with a cigar cutter). Another scene even features Dean and JT’s boss, Summerhayes (William H. Macy), and his peculiar habit of gesturing with his hands during meetings. that honestly feels like a page out of “101 Penis Jokes That Should Never Be Filmed.”
Despite an able Cena, the film barely offers anything new to the audience, with the odd exception of a handful of moments that might force a smile. Ricky Stanicky may have won a few hearts a couple of decades earlier. Now, just like its lead trio, it’s clumsy, juvenile and tedious.
Ricky Stanicky is streaming on Prime Video
