The Joneses is a clever way to deliver a tired message. By all rights this film should have annoyed me into tiny little pieces but it didn't. Other than the anti-materialism message of the movie the camera-work was, at times, irritatingly shaky. A suggestion for Hollywood; yes we know we are watching a movie, please stop reminding us, and quit with the lens flare already! Aside from those two points the movie was both interesting and amusing.
The gimmick of the movie is that the Joneses move in next door and they have everything. They are wealthy, sexy, funny, smart, and they have the newest and best cars, clothes, TVs, video games, and just about everything else under the sun. The big secret (revealed about 15 min into the film, so I'm not really spoiling anything here) is that they aren't really a family at all, but rather a "stealth marketing" team that sells products indirectly by making the neighbors jealous. Mr. Jones (David Duchovny) is a rookie whose sales are not up to snuff and Mrs. Jones (Demi Moore) is his corporate ladder climbing boss.
After setting up the premise of a soulless group of corporate toadies secretly posing as a family in order to make money, the remainder of the film is spent exploring the human side of the Joneses. They might not be a family but they are still people, with feelings, wants, and needs. It is this exploration of their humanity that makes The Joneses watchable, and I was amused by the "stealth marketing" that ran throughout the movie. The Joneses isn't a great movie but it is worth taking a chance on.
The gimmick of the movie is that the Joneses move in next door and they have everything. They are wealthy, sexy, funny, smart, and they have the newest and best cars, clothes, TVs, video games, and just about everything else under the sun. The big secret (revealed about 15 min into the film, so I'm not really spoiling anything here) is that they aren't really a family at all, but rather a "stealth marketing" team that sells products indirectly by making the neighbors jealous. Mr. Jones (David Duchovny) is a rookie whose sales are not up to snuff and Mrs. Jones (Demi Moore) is his corporate ladder climbing boss.
After setting up the premise of a soulless group of corporate toadies secretly posing as a family in order to make money, the remainder of the film is spent exploring the human side of the Joneses. They might not be a family but they are still people, with feelings, wants, and needs. It is this exploration of their humanity that makes The Joneses watchable, and I was amused by the "stealth marketing" that ran throughout the movie. The Joneses isn't a great movie but it is worth taking a chance on.