New in Theaters: "The Internship" Starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson

Finding a good, well paying job these days is difficult. Just ask Billy (Vince Vaughn) and Nick, two former sales professionals who get the boot when their company goes out of business. They have to reinvent themselves and decide, of all things, to apply for an internship at Google (product placement alert), where they must learn all about technology. While Nick and Billy appear to be out of their league amongst the much younger and smarter interns, they are accepted into the program and are placed with similar misfits who compete against other teams. The winning team receive jobs with the company.

Those familiar with Google have probably heard about the company campus which features free food, places to relax/nap and even games to play. I suspect the other benefits are primo as well. Those perks bewilder the middle-aged interns who are easily distracted and face a huge learning curve. Despite the challenges, Nick and Billy decide to try their best to make it work, but are not readily accepted by their fellow interns, including Stuart (Teen Wolf's Dylan O'Brien). As a result, they must find a way to coexist with them while successfully completing a series of tests, including developing a new App and selling advertising to companies not already on board with Google.

While The Internship may not win any prizes for original screenplay, the two hour film is surprisingly fast moving and consistently entertaining. In addition to Wilson and Vaughn's effective, if familiar, performances, the large cast is filled with talented supporting players, including Rose Byrne (Damages) as Nick's love interest, Max Minghella (The Social Network) as an arrogant intern who gives everyone a hard time, and Will Ferrell in an amusing cameo as Nick's boss at a mattress store. There is also a recurring joke involving the film Flashdance, which has clearly inspired Billy and he hopes to pay it forward, to the dismay of his fellow interns. Furthermore, the contemporary themes, such as reinventing yourself after a job loss, and the ongoing technology boom add a degree of realism to the story. Finally, even though Nick and Billy may struggle outside of the sales world, they are so darn likable that no matter what they do, I suspect viewers will root for them and it is easy to see how they could win over other, much younger people, with their positive attitudes and considerable, if sometimes odd, efforts.

Director: Shawn Levy
Screenplay by: Vince Vaughn and Jared Stern