'ENVY' Studio again delays Stiller comedy release
The film also stars another hot commodity, Jack Black.
By JACK MATHEWS
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Barry Levinson's "Envy" is a comedy starring two of the hottest funnymen in the business -- Ben Stiller and Jack Black. But it's safe to say that no other studio envied DreamWorks having the picture when it was being kicked around on the release schedule last year.
"Envy," about two factory co-workers whose friendship is sundered by one's successful get-rich-quick scheme, was originally scheduled for release a year ago. Then it was pushed back to May, then to (death knell, please) late summer. Finally, amid rumors it would go directly to video, DreamWorks announced the distant release date of April 2. (Now "Envy" has been pushed back to April 30. Mark your calendar with a pencil.)
This pattern of postponement usually means a movie isn't scoring well with preview audiences and needs tweaking -- anything from minor edits to a major overhaul. In this case, DreamWorks may have felt it needed a week when there was no competition.
Neither Stiller nor Black had had a leading role in a hit movie since 2001, and Levinson hadn't directed one since "Wag the Dog" in 1997. But during "Envy's" postponements, Black scored huge with the endearing "School of Rock" and Stiller opened '04 with the hits "Along Came Polly" and "Starsky & amp; Hutch."
Trailer
If DreamWorks execs foresaw this scenario six months ago and decided to wait it out, all credit to them. In the meantime, the trailer for the movie -- available for viewing at www.apple.com/trailers -- makes it look pretty funny. It certainly has a great premise for Manhattan dog walkers.
The scheme that makes an overnight millionaire out of Black's Nick Vandermark is an aerosol spray that vaporizes dog doody on contact. Stiller's Tim Dingman could have been a partner, but pooh-poohed the idea. Now, with the urging of a weird barfly played by Christopher Walken, he's out to avenge his own mistake.
One unfortunate thing about the delay of "Envy" is a scene of Stiller accidentally killing a horse. It was filmed before the one where he accidentally kills a pony in "Starsky & amp; Hutch."
Stiller got into trouble with ferret owners by bad-mouthing his weaselly co-star in "Along Came Polly." His second dead horse may get PETA after him.