“A.C.O.D.” stands for adult child of divorce. If you hate marriage or are a child of divorce this might be a good movie for you, but my guess is, regardless of who you are, it will probably still be extremely mediocre.
The movie focuses on Carter (Adam Scott), a seemingly well–adjusted adult who is still dealing with his parents’ fifteen–year old divorce. His younger brother decides to get married, and Carter is in charge of getting his parents to agree to be in the same room for the wedding. In his attempt, he ends up getting his parents back together, at least sexually. He’s so confused that he tracks down his childhood therapist Dr. Judith (Jane Lynch). Turns out, Dr. Judith isn’t a psychologist at all but a social scientist who used Carter as part of her research on children of divorce.
If you looked through the movie’s cast list you would assume you were in for a hilarious 90 minutes. With the combination of Scott, Lynch, Richard Jenkins, Amy Poehler and a side of Jessica Alba, what could be bad? Unfortunately, the answer is "almost everything." There are some funny lines here and there, but that's all—one–liners aside the movie is lacking in elaborate scenes or funny premises. Jane Lynch’s Judith is by far the best, and Amy Poehler isn't terrible, yet the movie goes nowhere, and the ending just creates more loose ends than it ties up.
In fact, Dr. Judith's books on the impact of divorce on children seem more interesting than their encompassing film—not exactly the sign of a great movie. A.C.O.D. finishes on an especially odd point as the credits roll, as the crew basically rags on the institution of marriage throughout. Maybe they're all A.C.O.Ds themselves? Either way, this bizarre tirade against marriage mars the product even further. A.C.O.D. must actually stand for "Awful Content Overflow, Disregard."
Grade: C-
Rating & Runtime: R, 88 min.
See if you liked: “50/50”
