Let’s assume you are in your 30s or 40s, into what we now call “tech,” though you are old enough to remember when the same thing was called “computers” and although you are feeling “older,” you certainly don’t think of yourself as “old.”
If that sounds familiar, then there’s a pretty good chance you will enjoy The Internship, a diverting if largely unremarkable comedy starring Vince Vaughn (who also co-wrote the film) and Owen Wilson, directed by Shaun Levy (Night at the Museum, Date Night).
Vaughn and Wilson play ageing, down on their luck salesmen who embark on a quixotic adventure to try and land a job at Google. Their shtick is familiar and in its best moments still appealing. Rose Byrne largely phones in her forgettable appearance as Owen’s love interest, but there are much better performances from Aasif Mandvi as the supervisor of the internship programme, Tiya Sircar as one of the fellow interns and a spectacular cameo from Will Ferrel as Owen’s brother in law.
There are plenty of laughs and amusing situations, though how far this film moves you, either comically or emotionally, may depend a lot on your age and the extent to which you identify with the premise of the film. I had a good time with The Internship and felt for its view of how cynical and screen dependent today’s youth are and how much the culture of work has changed in recent years. But, then again, I’m a crusty old geek who bears more than a passing resemblance to the semi-redundant characters Vaughn and Wilson portray.
