The film does a great job at capturing the cold, evil nature of Ian Mckellen's character (who is well cast and gives a great performance) But considering that this is a film directed by Bryan Singer, you know right from the start that this isn't
his strongest directorial effort.
Ficarra and Requa, who built a
strong, foul - mouthed reputation for themselves following the writing of Bad Santa (2003) and their
directorial debut and
strongest effort to date, I Love You Philip Morris (2009), have lost none of their penchant for authentically inclined adult interactions (despite their cuckoo rom - com fantasy Crazy, Stupid, Love., 2011).