Comedies from the 2000s can be crude, raunchy, and for some audiences, offensive. The jokes don’t always land with modern viewers like they did at the time, especially if they’re homophobic or racist in nature. Waiting…, a 2005 film starring Ryan Reynolds, is a perfect example. Many elements of the movie are outdated, such as a few gay jokes, the cultural appropriation of the busboys (and one cringey scene of Dane Cook pretending to be a slave), and the strange game where the cooks try to sneakily show their genitals to each other. It’s the type of bro comedy that was fairly common at that time.
Despite its flaws, and a dismal 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, Waiting…isn’t nearly as bad as one may think. Director/writer Rob McKittrick has his finger on the pulse of what it’s like to work in the service industry. ShenaniganZ is recognizable as a generic chain restaurant that sells lackluster food and has a young waitstaff. It may not go as far into mocking the service industry as other millennial/Gen X workplace comedies like Clerks or Office Space, nor are the characters as fully developed, but there is still a beating heart to be found in the film. Waiting..isn’t nearly as bad as it would seem on the surface. It deserves another or first time watch.
Mitch Is a Ticking Time Bomb Throughout Waiting
Throughout Waiting…, Ryan Reynold’s character Monty is responsible for training a new waiter named Mitch (John Francis Daly). He shows him the real ropes of working at ShenaniganZ – not necessarily how to actually do the job, but the behind-the-scenes pranks and hijinks of the staff. Monty shows Mitch how to handle rude customers (get the cooks to manhandle their food), he introduces him to the beyond cheesy training video, and he lets him in on the fact that he wants to sleep with the hostess Natasha (Vanessa Lengies). He also lets him go into the kitchen and spend time with the cooks, including Raddimus (Luis Guzmán), who tells him all about the ludicrous game they play that involves trying to get someone to walk into a room and see their genitals.
Meanwhile, as Mitch is training, the audience gets to meet some of the other staff members at ShenaniganZ. T-Dog (Max Kasch) and Nick (Andy Milanakis – a flash in the pan star on MTV in the 2000s) are the lazy busboys who spend more time huffing whipped cream than actually working. Serena (Anna Faris), Dean (Justin Long), and his girlfriend Amy (Kaitlin Doubleday) are fellow waiters. Calvin (Rob Benedict) is another waiter, with his own bizarre storyline where he can’t urinate in a public setting. There are also a couple bartenders who barely get any screentime and are hardly worth mentioning. The entire team at ShenaniganZ is led by Dan (David Koechner), the pervy manager who has to demand respect and takes his job way too seriously.
Waiting…is not necessarily about anything. It’s a slice of life movie that follows these characters on their shift at ShenaniganZ. The audience learns, for instance, that Dean gets offered the Assistant Manager position after working at ShenaniganZ for four years. He has to decide whether he wants to continue working there the rest of his life. In another scene, it is revealed that Serena and Monty slept together in the past, only it wasn’t satisfying to Serena.
However, the real star of the show is Mitch. John Francis Daly has mastered the art of making amused and disgusted faces, depending on the situation. He’s quiet throughout the entire movie because his arrogant fellow coworkers won’t let him get a word in edgewise. At the end of film, after quietly stewing in their ridiculousness, he explodes and tells everyone off at an after-work party. His rant represents what the audience should be thinking up to this point. These people are self-absorbed and not nearly as interesting as they think they are. This final moment in the film changes it from just another lowbrow 2000s comedy to one that is self-aware and actually kind of funny.
The Rest of the Cast in Waiting Is Genuinely Likable as Well
Of course, Ryan Reynolds may be what inspires some people to rewatch Waiting…His character is actually fairly similar to Deadpool since he has the same trademark snark and quick wit. He is also overly confident with a healthy amount of self-mockery. These character traits are what made Ryan Reynolds such a good antihero in Deadpool years later, so it’s fun to see them fresh in one of his earliest comedies.
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Ryan Reynolds isn’t the only likable actor in Waiting…It stars other 2000s comedy stars, including Justin Long, Dane Cook, and Anna Faris. As a product of its time, Waiting…unfortunately doesn’t do a lot with its female characters, save a memorable moment where Serena (Anna Faris) makes fun of Monty’s performance in bed. However, Justin Long gets a chance to shine as the relatable twenty-something guy, Dean. He’s believable in the role and proves why he became a movie star. Dane Cook was at the peak of his career at the time, so he’s a welcome sight for many millennials.
One of the standouts in the cast is Rob Benedict as Calvin. Save for a brief appearance in the equally underappreciated 2000s comedy Not Another Teen MovieBenedict didn’t have the same career trajectory as his fellow costars in Waiting…He did have memorable guest arcs on the shows Supernatural and Feliciities, but he didn’t get the comedy career of the rest of the cast. It’s a shame because every moment with Calvin in Waiting…is memorable. He’s a scene-stealer.
It’s this all-star cast, all bringing their A-game and all displaying genuine chemistry, that makes Waiting…an enjoyable film. The actors capture the feeling of what it’s like for people who are in their twenties, still working dead-end service jobs. Viewers will believe that they are friends by consequence of being coworkers. It’s something that happens a lot in service industry jobs.
Millennials Will Feel Nostalgic While Watching Waiting
Even though not every element of Waiting… holds up, it has that same retrospective charm as Wet Hot American Summer. Outdated lowbrow jokes won’t outshine the appeal of seeing Ryan Reynolds be snarky or Justin Long adorably boyish. It may not be a groundbreaking or particularly smart comedy, but at the very least, it is fun to see such a likable cast so early in their careers.
Plus, it’s hard not to feel nostalgic while watching Waiting… Many viewers between the ages of twenty-five and forty-five will recognize certain quirks of the script from their days working in a restaurant or food service job. For instance, Naomi (Alanna Ubach) is one of the waitresses who’s been employed at ShenaniganZ for too long and is easily angered by the customers and her coworkers. She is irritated by the job, yet seems to take it very seriously and has no desire to leave. Her character is a waitress archetype that almost any viewer who has or still does work in the food industry will recognize.
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Rob McKittrick, the writer/director of Waiting…worked at a chain restaurant in downtown Orlando, Florida for three years. He brought his real-world experience and his unique pain points to the script. Viewers will feel that authenticity when watching the comedy, and it only serves to strengthen it and make it that much better. There’s a beating heart in the film, and those kinds of passion projects are always worth watching, despite their flaws.
The 2009 sequel Still Waiting….which sees the return of many cast members, is not nearly as good as the original. Meanwhile, many of the cast members, especially Ryan Reynolds, went on to bigger and better things. All of that aside, there are worse ways to spend 94 minutes than watching Waiting…It’s a fairly enjoyable 2000s romp with a likable cast and a level of authenticity that is missing from many big studio productions.
Waiting…
- Release Date
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October 7, 2005
- Runtime
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94 Minutes
- Director
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Rob McKittrick
- Writers
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Rob McKittrick
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