The House (2017): Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler Gamble on One of the Worst Comedies of the 2010s

The House

Directed by: Andrew Jay Cohen

Written by: Brendan O’Brien, Andrew Jay Cohen

Starring: Amy Poehler, Will Ferrell, Jason Mantzoukas, Nick Kroll

Release Date: June 30, 2017

⭐ Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ (1 out of 5 stars)

A One-Note Comedy That Never Finds Its Rhythm

Oh, how I hate The House! This one-note comedy about clueless parents trying to fund their daughter’s college education by running an illegal casino is an embarrassing and joyless mess.

Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler star as Scott and Kate Johansen, a married couple who lose their daughter’s scholarship to a corrupt city council member (Nick Kroll). In desperation, they join their neighbor Frank (Jason Mantzoukas) to open an underground casino in suburbia. What could have been a sharp satire of middle-class desperation instead becomes a clumsy, loud, and painfully unfunny endurance test.

No Chemistry, No Direction, No Laughs

Ferrell and Poehler, two of the most talented improvisers of their generation, have all the romantic chemistry of siblings. Their scenes lack spark or emotional grounding, and their characters never feel like real people — just loose sketches strung together by an endless string of “yes, and…” bits.

Director Andrew Jay Cohen, working from a script co-written with Brendan O’Brien (Neighbors), fails to provide any shape or rhythm. The House feels improvised on the spot, with each gag dragging on long past its expiration date. Even a cameo from Jeremy Renner can’t elevate this disaster — he looks as confused to be there as we are to still be watching.

Improvisation Gone Wild

Improvisation can bring spontaneity to comedy, but here it becomes a curse. Without structure or pacing, each joke collapses under the weight of its own indulgence. The infamous scene where Ferrell accidentally cuts off a man’s finger epitomizes the film’s tone — a chaotic, unfunny mess that confuses noise for humor.

It’s as if everyone involved assumed their mere presence would guarantee laughs. Unfortunately, The House proves that talent alone isn’t enough when there’s no direction, no editing discipline, and no one willing to say “cut.”

A Symptom of the Worst Comedy Instincts

Ferrell’s worst tendencies — mugging, shouting, doubling down on tired gags — are on full display here. Without a strong director to rein him in, we get the unchecked id version of Will Ferrell, where energy replaces wit and volume replaces timing.

Movies like Step Brothers and Talladega Nights have similar problems, but The House sinks even lower because it doesn’t even have memorable characters or quotable lines. It’s just noise and chaos, with everyone trying too hard to make something funny out of nothing.

A Casino Built on Bad Jokes

Even the soundtrack choices are lazy. The film opens with Flo Rida’s “My House” — a painfully obvious needle drop that sets the tone for what follows: unimaginative, overused, and out of touch. The joke isn’t just obvious — it’s borderline insulting.

By the time the credits roll, I couldn’t decide which was worse: watching The House or suffering through Transformers: The Last Knight. At least Michael Bay’s explosions make sense in their own deranged logic. The House just implodes under the weight of its own bad ideas.

Final Verdict: The House Always Loses

There isn’t a single redeeming quality to The House. It wastes a dream cast, a decent concept, and every ounce of goodwill Ferrell and Poehler have built over years of great comedy work. What’s left is an unfunny, exhausting exercise in missed opportunities — the cinematic equivalent of losing your life savings at the roulette table.

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#WillFerrell #AmyPoehler #TheHouse2017 #ComedyMovies #MovieReview #BadMovies #VocalMedia #FilmCriticism #2010sComedies #AndrewJayCohen