Middle Men (2009)

Lowlifes living the high life may have some comedic value as a story concept, but when it is based on real life you start to ask yourself why these douchebags are being celebrated in movie form. Such is the conundrum of watching Middle Men, that spotlights the guys who created online credit card  processing in order to make some coin from porn, that of course ended up revolutionizing the internet. It’s got a good story, good acting, good direction, good everything else… but in the end suffers from the fact that you just can’t feel good about what you’re watching. And as much as they want you to like Owen Wilson’s character, Jack Harris, you just can’t. On top of that it’s a bit of a mess, and you’re never quite sure whether you’re watching a comedy, melodrama, crime story, or documentary. Mostly, for those of us who were adults in that era, it just makes you wish you’d thought of ways to monetize that new thing called the internet. But it also makes you want to shower afterwards.