‘Ricky Stanicky’ is 10 Years Too Late To Have Much of an Impact— Film Review
John Cena’s performance outshines every other aspect of this wacky comedy film
I’ll admit to having had zero exposure to John Cena before he came onto the scene in 2021’s The Suicide Squad as Peacemaker, a role he reprised in the eponymous sequel HBO series. Cena, whose physical form resembles that of a shape-shifting alien who modelled its human look on a 90’s comic book character, is seemingly capable of bringing an unparalleled level of action and comedy to everything he touches, and his presence alone was the only reason I had any interesting in seeing Ricky Stanicky.
Cena is undoubtedly the best part of the movie. We’ll get to that. First, I want to talk about forgiveness. I want you to ask you a question: If your romantic partner had lied to your face dozens of times to get out of attending social events with you by concocting an elaborate story about a childhood friend battling cancer, would you forgive them after it all came crashing down? What if their two best friends were in on it and were also lying to their partners? What if the three of them had been lying to everyone for two decades? No, no, take your time. Just think about it. We’ll circle back.
